


Till There Was You: Book 2--Reunion

by kimara (obi_ki)



Series: Till There was you [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Extended Universe
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-19
Updated: 2011-05-19
Packaged: 2017-10-19 13:42:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 26,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/201499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/obi_ki/pseuds/kimara
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This story is an adventure in the life of Luke and Mara Skywalker. It takes place about six months after their wedding. There are minor spoilers for some of the expanded Universe books. This is part 2 of a 4 part story.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Till There Was You: Book 2--Reunion

Title: Till There Was You: Book 2--Reunion

Author: kimara

Disclaimer: Everyone in the Star Wars universe belongs to George Lucas and Lucasfilms. This story is for entertainment purposes only and no money is being made from this.

Summary: This story is an adventure in the life of Luke and Mara Skywalker. It takes place about six months after their wedding. There are minor spoilers for some of the expanded Universe books. This is part 2 of a 4 part story. Book 1 is titled Separation The overall rating for this is NC-17 and this book would be considered NC-17. Thanks to Mona for all your assistance. Without your constant support, ideas and patience, I would not have been able to finish this. Feedback is always welcome. Send feedback to kimarasky@hotmail.com. Hope you enjoy the story.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Mara secured and left the ship, her mind was focused on her mental encounter with her husband. The contact with Luke’s mind had left her puzzled, as she sensed he was hiding something. The word surprise had leapt out, but he had quickly closed himself off and she had been unable to find out what he was hiding. Well she had a surprise of her own planned and if she didn’t get moving it wouldn’t happen. She walked rapidly from the hangar bay and arrived at the store about ten minutes before it was to close. She quickly collected and paid for the items on her list and walked to their apartment.

Mara had barely entered the apartment and put down her purchases, when she felt Luke reached out again and touch her mind. * I will be home in about five minutes * he sent warmly. * I missed you so much and I can’t wait to see you. * Luke’s mental touch changed quickly from words to images, as he projected himself kissing and caressing her. The picture shifted to her lying nude on the bed with Luke’s blond hair obscuring his face as it was positioned between her legs. The intensity of the image caused as gasp to escape from Mara’s lips.

Luke could feel Mara’s reaction to his mental probe and he grinned wickedly. A few more nudges should distract her suspicions sufficiently and he would greatly benefit from that distraction. As he attempted to send another image to Mara, his mind was filled with one of her own. She was standing before him in a sheer sleeping shift and was trailing kisses down his chest. She pushed him roughly to the floor and straddled him, allowing his enflamed shaft to penetrate her. It was Luke’s turn to gasp as he felt his body quickly responding to her image.

Mara smiled brightly. Although she had not initiated the images as she had planned, she was happy to see that they were both on the same wavelength. She quickly arranged their snack on a tray and placed it by their bed, although she was very sure they would not partake of it until much later. She shed her jumpsuit and undergarments and donned the sheer yellow shift she had worn in her image. She had just finished brushing and replaiting her hair when she felt Luke’s presence outside the door.

She was entering the living room just as Luke came through the door. Mara smiled at him seductively and almost leapt into his arms as the door closed behind him. “I have missed you so much,” she purred as she brought her lips to his and kissed him passionately. Wrapping her hands in his hair she pulled him more closely to her and wiggled against him. She could feel his arousal easily through his clothing and relished in it.

After a few moments, Luke pulled his lips from hers. He locked his passion filled blue eyes with Mara’s exotic green ones and stared at her intently. “You have no idea how much I have missed you, my love,” he whispered passionately. He returned his lips to hers; plunging his tongue into her mouth and intertwining it with hers as his hands began to roam along the skin of her neck and back.

“I think I have an idea,” Mara replied impishly as she brought her hand between their bodies and caressed his erection through his clothing. After a few moments, she brought her hands to his chest and began to quickly unbutton his flightsuit. As she pushed it from his shoulders, she remembered their dilemma during the trip home from Altrann and pushed him into the chair behind him. She proceeded to remove his boots and socks before pulling him back to a standing position.

Luke laughed lightly as she pushed him into the chair, his mind also returning to that day on the ship when he had fallen sprawled on the bunk when his pants had become tangled at his feet. As he rose, he quickly stepped out of the flightsuit as Mara pushed it to his feet. After stepping out of it, he again pulled her into his embrace and continued running his hands frantically over her skin. He wanted to touch and caress every inch of her but knew he did not possess that degree of control.

Sensing his thoughts, Mara removed his boxers and pushed him to the floor as she had in her image. “There will be time for control later,” she teased. “Now is a time for action.” She quickly straddled him and lowered herself to completely engulf his throbbing shaft. She moaned with pleasure and relished the feel of him enclosed within her before attempting to move above him.

Luke stilled her movements by placing both hands around her hips. “One minute love,” he moaned. “This is obstructing my view,” he teased, grabbing the hem of the sleeping shift and pulling it over her head. Tossing it to the floor, he brought his hands to the plait of red gold that hung over her shoulder. He began to unbind it, until it flowed freely across her neck and shoulders. ‘Much better,” he said softly. He returned his hands to her hips and began lifting and lowering her body to his in a slow rhythm.

The feelings created by this slow rhythm soon became completely overwhelming and Luke sought to change their position. He first brought himself into a sitting position and then rolled Mara onto her back all while he remained sheathed fully within her. He quickly increased the pace of his thrusts until they had taken on the franticness of his earlier caresses. Mara began to press her body into his to match his deep probing thrusts. Their need was so great it was as if they were trying to totally possess each other. Mara began to squirm and shudder under him as her climax began to overtake her and Luke strove to increase the depth and pace of his penetration. The sensation of Mara’s muscles clenching around him as she was swept over the edge was more than he could bear and warm fluid exploded from him to mingle with hers. He collapsed upon her with his heart beating so wildly he thought it would explode from his body.

After a few moments of relishing the feel of their hearts pounding against one another and their passion drenched skin cooling in the air of the room, Luke lifted himself onto his elbows and gazed deeply into Mara’s eyes. “I thought we had reached a plateau to our level of desire and passion in the past months, but I was mistaken. That was absolutely incredible,” he added with lust still evident in his eyes. He rolled himself off of her and onto his side and rolled her to face him. He caressed her face with his hands as he continued to stare intently into her eyes.

They lay lost in each other’s eyes for quite a while before Mara broke the spell. “I promised you that our life together would never be boring, Farmboy,” she whispered, “and I intend to fulfill that promise. Maybe we should spend time apart more often,” she teased. She watched his eyes to gauge his reaction before smiling impishly. “No, I don’t think I will let you out of my sight for quite a while, Skywalker.”

“I concur with that Mara,” Luke replied. “I don’t plan on being away from you overnight for a long, long time.” Bringing himself into a sitting position, he looked at her impishly before drawing her into a sitting position as well. “Do you think we could move our activities to a more comfortable location?” he said banging his hand on the floor. He stood up, bringing her with him, before she could reply and led her to their bedroom. He laughed softly when he saw the arrangement of items on the table by their bed. "I see that you planned on having our evening activities continue Mrs. Skywalker,” he chuckled.

“I thought we might need to eat something nutritious to keep up our strength, Skywalker,” Mara teased. “I don’t plan on leaving this bed for many, many hours.” She lay back on the bed, drawing Luke down with her and nestling her face into his chest.

Feeling Mara shiver slightly as the air surrounded her cooling body, Luke wrapped her more tightly in his arms and used the Force to draw the sheet up over their bodies. “Is that better?” he asked with concern as he reached to touch her mind.

“Much better,” Mara answered. She felt totally enclosed and protected by both his body and soul. This man, whom she had at first hated and later denied her feelings for, was able to bring her to a level of peace and contentment that she never thought possible. Thinking about how much she had grown caused her mind to shift back to her thoughts of having children and her dreams. She pulled slightly out of his embrace and looked at him intently. Seeing that his eyes were closed, she caressed his face and called to him softly, “Luke.”

Opening his eyes, Luke was greeted by her brilliant green orbs staring intently at him. Mara’s eyes were filled with such love and passion, he thought he could drown in them. Yet beneath the love he could see something else, probing, questioning into his soul. “Yes my love,” he whispered as he reflected his love in his deep blue eyes. “What is it?”

“I spent a lot of time thinking while we were apart,” she began. She stopped as if to collect her thoughts before continuing. “I also had two very intense dreams - they could even have been visions - which seemed to be messages from the Force.” Her eyes remained locked with Luke’s as she spoke and the emotions that she was transmitting to him through their bond radiated the importance of her thoughts.

Trying to help her share her concerns, Luke took her hands and very softly prodded her. “Were these dreams and whatever you were thinking about connected?”

“Yes,” Mara whispered. “Luke, I have thought a lot about this and I think I’m ready to have a baby,” she added with emotion overcoming her.

Luke thought his heart would leap from his chest at the implication of her words. A baby. Their baby. The joy radiating from his being at this thought was almost palpable. “You want to have our baby,” he asked, wanting to make sure that he had really heard her correctly. Before she could answer, he added, “were your dreams about our baby?”

“Yes and yes,” Mara replied. “ I had the first dream the night after you told me about Tionne being pregnant. The second one was during my flight from Swiven to Coruscant,” she added. Her expression clouded as she replayed the dreams in her mind.

Seeing that she was very deep in thought, Luke reached to touch her face to get her attention as he began to speak. “Will you tell me about the dreams?”

Smiling brightly, Mara brought her hand to Luke’s face and mimicked his gesture. “In the first dream, we were in our quarters on Yavin and you were sitting on the floor playing with a baby. I entered the room and you turned him to face me. It was incredible, Luke,” she added with her feeling of awe evident in her voice. “He looked just like a miniature version of you.” She gently probed his emotions as she studied his expression.

Luke was deep in thought, lost in the revelation that Mara had just made. Two words kept playing over in his head. Baby and him. She dreamt that they had a son. Was it only a dream or was it a vision of the future he mused, looking intently at Mara. Then he remembered she had said that she had two dreams. “Tell me about the other dream,” he asked gently.

“In the other dream, I heard a baby crying and looked up to see Tionne holding a baby and pointing to me. Looking down, I saw that I was pregnant.” She took a deep breath before continuing. “I put my hand on my stomach and I felt the baby move. When I woke up my hand was resting on my stomach as it had in the dream.”

Looking intently at Mara, Luke knew what her next question would be. But he also knew that he could not give her the answer she wanted, at least not yet. He held her gaze until she voiced the question.

“Do you think they were Force visions or just dreams conjured up by my thoughts of having a baby?” Mara asked with apprehension in her voice.

Luke looked at her lovingly, wishing he could tell he what she wanted to hear. “I can’t be sure, ” he began, “without either having shared the dreams or meditating until the Force shows me the answer. But,” he added warmly, “it really doesn’t matter. What matters to me is that you decided that you are ready for us to have children.” He took a deep breath to rein in his emotions before he continued. “Do you realize what an amazing gift you are giving me just by coming to this decision? I love you, Mara Jade Skywalker,” he added pulling her into his arms and kissing her deeply.

Pulling her lips from his, she met his gaze. “I love you too, Luke” Mara said softly. “More than I ever thought I could possibly love anyone.”

Beginning to finally think coherently again, Luke’s mind shifted to Mara becoming pregnant. “When are you planning to stop taking the repress meds?” he asked.

“I already have. I stopped the morning I left for Swiven,” Mara replied watching Luke’s expression closely. She was rewarded by a broad grin encompassing his face. “I hope that is okay with you,” she added smugly.

Luke’s expression changed as if an idea had suddenly occurred to him. “Is there any possibility that you could have become pregnant tonight?” he asked hopefully.

“Anything is possible,” Mara answered. Her expression changed to a devilish grin before she continued. “We will just have to make sure that we are regularly partaking of activities that will help us achieve that goal.”

“I am sure I can rise to that challenge,” Luke quipped, wearing an equally devilish grin. “Would you like to begin working on that immediately, my love?” he added, as his eyes roamed over her upper body with a lustful gaze.

Mara responded by taking his face in her hands and placing a deep probing kiss upon Luke’s lips. This kiss continued until the necessity for oxygen forced them to separate. Pushing herself into a sitting position, she asked. ”Would you like to sample something from my snack tray?”

“Allow me,” Luke replied reaching over and picking up the two champagne flutes. As he handed one to Mara, his expression suddenly became clouded and he looked at her intently.

Understanding his confusion, Mara explained before Luke could even voice his question. “It’s non alcoholic,” she laughed. “I thought about hot chocolate but knew that the possibility of us drinking it while it was still hot was equivalent to a snowball surviving on Tatooine,” she chuckled bringing her glass to her lips. After taking a sip, she added, “just in case.”

Luke took a long sip from his own glass before reaching over to the tray. Taking a strawberry, he dipped it into the small bowl of cream and brought it to Mara’s lips. He intentionally spread the cream on her lips and chin before feeding her the fruit. Laughing huskily he said, “looks like I will have to clean you up again.” He brought his lips to hers, kissed her lightly and began licking the cream from her face.

Luke attempted to repeat the process but Mara deftly plucked the fruit from his fingers and replayed his motions across his chin and lips. They continued bantering and feeding each other until the bowl of fruit was empty. Once he brought the last piece to her lips, an impish grin spread across his face. Taking a large dollop of cream between his fingers, he spread it across her left breast. Mara jumped from the contrast of the cold cream touching her warm skin and shivered in anticipation of his intentions. The devilish glint that shone in his deep blue eyes belayed his enjoyment of her reaction. “I am still hungry, ” he teased. “Since we have run out of fruit, I will have to suppress my hunger by snacking on you.” He brought his lips to her breast, running his tongue in a circular motion and lapping up the cream he had placed there. Mara moaned and squirmed as he proceeded. He continued this path with his tongue until he had licked the cream from all but her erect and excited nipple. He looked up and met her passion filled gaze, smiling widely. “I saved the best for last,” he quipped before lowering his head and pulling her taunt nipple into his mouth. He continued to suckle and nip at her breast for a few moments before he pulled away and reached back into the bowl. Taking another dollop of cream between his fingers, he repeated the process on her right breast.

Mara’s level of arousal by the time Luke had finished his ministrations was almost unbearable, but she was intent on repaying his torture in kind. Flipping him onto his back, she quickly straddled him, reached into the bowl and scooped up a dollop of cream of her own. It was Luke’s turn to jump as she grabbed his throbbing shaft and began coating it with her handful of cream. She laughed huskily and winked at him before sliding herself so that hers lips were directly over his manhood. She kissed the tip lightly before moving her tongue and licking him from base to tip. Luke moaned and squirmed beneath her touch, relishing the intense sensations she was creating with her tongue while fighting to retain enough control to keep the experience from ending quickly.

Once she had removed all the coating, Mara attempted to repeat the procedure but Luke had withstood enough of her torture. Flipping her onto her back, he quickly sheathed himself fully within her. He started thrusting slowly but quickly increased both the pace and the depth. Their play had brought their level of arousal to such heights that they had not been joined for very long before he felt himself erupting and the shudders of Mara’s climax engulfing her. He collapsed upon her, totally spent.

After a few moments, Luke rolled himself off of her and lightly kissed Mara’s abdomen. Nestling his face into the softness there, he allowed himself to ponder the possibilities. Soon there could be a life growing within her, a life they had created from their love. He sent gentle force tendrils into her body, searching and probing. Intellectually he knew that even their activities had been fruitful, he would not be able to sense anything yet but his heart wanted to try.

Mara chuckled to herself as she felt Luke gently probe her body. She too wondered if they had created a child tonight. She truly hoped that was the case but the practical side of her knew that the possibility was rather slim. She had only stopped taking the repress meds seven days ago and she was unsure of how long it would take for them to fully be out of her system. Maybe she would go to see Cilghal tomorrow and find out. With her mind on that thought, she drifted into a deep, sated sleep.

Luke felt Mara’s breathing slow and soon realized she had fallen asleep. Lifting his head gently from her, he rolled her onto her side and spooned his body behind her. Wrapping his arms firmly around her, he covered their nude bodies and relishing in the afterglow of their lovemaking, allowed himself to drift off to sleep as well.

The light was beginning to stream into their bedroom, when the feel of something fluttering against his face woke Luke. He opened his eyes to see that he had nestled his face into the gorgeous red gold of his wife’s hair. His heart swelled as the vision before him brought his mind back to their conversations the night before. Soon his second dream could be fulfilled. His first dream had become reality when they had realized their feelings for each other and married. Hopefully soon they would have a child.

Luke gently released Mara from his embrace and rose from their bed. He had always been an early riser and needed less sleep that his wife. After a quick trip to the refresher, he donned a pair of sleeping pants and entered the kitchen. He started a pot of caf, poured a glass of juice and moved with it to his favorite chair. Seated comfortably, he decided to put his solitary time to good use and meditate on his wife’s decision and her dreams. He began by taking deep cleansing breaths until his body and mind were totally relaxed. Within a few minutes, he had dropped into a meditative trance and scenes flashed through his mind. The peace and tranquility he felt while meditating was refreshing and he relished it. After an unknown amount of time, the scenes flashing before him slowed and cleared. He was leaning against a tree and Mara was sitting between his legs with her back resting against his chest, near the waterfall on Yavin. His hands were wrapped around her, resting lightly on the rounded expanse of her abdomen. He began rubbing it gently and was rewarded by the feel of a firm kick against his hands. He sent warm, loving feelings through the Force to the mind enclosed there.

Soon scenes again began to race before Luke until a later time when they again cleared and slowed. He heard Mara scream in his mind and almost immediately felt her force presence disappear. He could see he was in the cockpit of his X-wing but did not know where he was. He tried to hold the vision but it dissolved again into flashing scenes.

Luke came out of the trance with his heart racing. He took deep breaths to calm himself and reached out to Mara through their bond. She was just beginning to stir. Pondering the images the Force had sent him, his emotions were swirling. The scene on Yavin showed him that Mara’s dreams had definitely been visions. Peace and contentment had radiated from their beings and the child within had been secure and safe. The second vision was such a small glimpse that it frustrated and frightened him. He had no sense of time or place. He again took some deep cleansing breaths. Yoda had told him the future was always in motion. He would keep his guard up and stay closely in tune with everything around them. He would trust in the Force to show him what he needed to do and to protect them. He buried the second vision deep in his mind so as not to worry Mara and rose from his chair. Looking at the chrono, he realized that two hours had passed since he sat down to meditate.

Luke reentered their bedroom, walked to the bed and kissed his wife lightly on the lips. “Wake up, sleepyhead,” he called softly gently caressing her face. Her presence was helping to calm him further as he gently touched her mind.

Mara woke to see her husband staring down at her lovingly. “Good morning, Farmboy,” she said. Seeing the amount of sun that was filtering into the room, she said, “It is much later than your farmer’s chrono lets you sleep, so I assume that you have been up for quite a while. What have you been doing while you let me sleep?”

“Not much,” Luke replied, watching her expression intently. “I made some caf, had some juice, meditated….”

‘You were meditating,” Mara interrupted. “Did you see anything?” she added impatiently. When he did not answer quickly enough she added very sarcastically, “well Skywalker, what did you see?”

Luke couldn’t resist teasing her a little. “Impatience leads to the Darkside, Mara.” Seeing the daggers her eyes were shooting at him, he decided that he had teased her enough. Looking at her lovingly he said, “would you like me to show you what I saw?”

“Yes, I would,” Mara answered softly.

Taking her hands in his, Luke pulled her into a sitting position facing him and rested his forehead against hers. Carefully guarding the second vision, he sent Mara the images of them on Yavin and the feelings that had radiated from all of them. Once he had shared them with her fully, he pulled back and locked his intense blue eyes into her emerald ones. The relief in hers was palpable and he could see the happiness shining in them.

“So, they were visions and not just dreams, then” Mara asked, seeking more reassurance.

“They were definitely visions but with no inkling of time though,” Luke replied. “We will just have to be patient and trust in the Force. Now to you think we could get dressed and have breakfast. I have some things I need to do,” he added smiling widely, “ and I would like you to come with me.”

“What are you up to, Skywalker?” Mara barbed trying to probe him. “I thought we could spend the day in bed, experimenting on ways to accomplish our new goal,” she added seductively.

“As much as I would like to take you up on that offer, Jade,” Luke quipped, “I have things that need to be done this morning.” He pulled her into his arms and rubbed against her suggestively. “I will gladly spend tonight making up for the inconvenience of your having to accompany me.”

Kissing him deeply, Mara retorted. “I will hold you to that Farmboy and I know that you are well aware of the price for disappointing me.” She pulled from his embrace and sauntered to the refresher, feeling his gaze locked on her backside. “ I am going to take a shower, “ she stated, turning back and grinning impishly. Seeing his body’s reaction, she knew that he could not resist her implied offer and she had won this round.

“Mind if I join you,” Luke said sheepishly. His body’s reaction to the nude vision before him was very evident and decided he might as well give in. Another hour wouldn’t make that much difference. He would call Wedge after their shower.

“Are you sure you have time?” Mara teased not being able to resist. She had sensed something about Wedge in his pondering and decided to see if he would slip in his current state. “What do you need to call Wedge for?” she asked sweetly.

Luke chuckled to himself at Mara’s attempt to trap him. He could still keep up with her even with his current level of desire. “Nothing major,” he said. “Just some New Republic business.” He followed her into the refresher and quickly turned on the shower. Stepping behind her he said, “after you.”

Mara entered the shower pulling Luke behind her and quickly drew him into her embrace. She kissed him deeply and began running her fingertips across his back. Reaching for a bottle of hair and body wash, she squeezed some into her palm and rubbed it into his hair and scalp. As she washed his hair, she pondered the enjoyment she got from doing little things for him. She had never expected it to be like this. She poured more wash into her hands and began to rub it into a lather over every part of his body. She paid extra attention to his manhood, running her lathered hands firmly over the full length of it. She relished the feel of his muscles under her hands, the texture of his skin and the reaction she was creating. Once she had cleaned every inch of him, she brought herself back to face him and kissed him passionately with her tongue probing into his mouth to duel with his.

Luke had savored Mara’s touch on his skin and now planned on creating the same sensations on her body. He began as she had by washing her hair. Lathering her red gold locks, he likened the sensation to running his hands through spun silk. Once he had finished her hair, he worked some additional wash into a thick lather and began spreading it over her body. He too covered every inch of her, relishing the feel of her silky smooth skin under his hands. He paid special attention to her beautiful breasts rubbing his hands over them until her nipples had risen into taunt peaks. He knelt before her and moved lower down her body beginning at her feet and working his way to her inner thighs, one leg at a time. Once he had completed his attentions everywhere else, he proceeded to run his lathered hands gently over her curls. He felt her knees buckle slightly and placed his other hand under her buttocks to steady her. He spread her legs apart slightly with his hand and inserted two fingers into her paradise causing her to moan loudly. He began a thrusting motion with his fingers and turned her body into the stream of the shower to wash away the soap that covered her curls. Once the soap had been removed, he buried his face between her legs. He began to kiss and suckle her, creating a rhythm with his tongue that concurred with that of his fingers. Within moments, he felt her shuddering above him and was rewarded with a large volume of her sweet nectar filling his mouth.

Luke held her securely until he felt her body recover from the shudders of her climax. Pulling himself from between her legs, he stood and brought his lips to hers and kissed her with a passion that rivaled Mara’s earlier one. Breaking the kiss, he turned her gently, leaned her against the wall and entered her from behind. He placed his arms under hers with his hands against the wall to help steady and support her. He did not move for a few moments, relishing the feeling of her wetness surrounding him. Then he began to thrust slowly within her, his angle of penetration increasing the friction against him. Within minutes the slow thrusts had disappeared, replaced by deeper, more rapid ones. She wiggled back against him endeavoring to push him more deeply inside her. Her squirming caused his pressure point to shift and almost immediately brought both of them to a powerful climax.

Luke leaned his head against her back enjoying the feel of Mara’s heartbeat pounding in his ear. After a few moments, he could feel the tension that remaining in this position was causing in her legs and withdrew from her. Turning her to face him he pulled her into his arms and allowed her to lean her weight against him. They stood like this for quite a while, holding each other while the water cascaded down their bodies. Once their breathing and heartbeats had returned to normal, Mara pulled away from him and stood up. Reaching for the body wash, she poured some into her hand and washed the remnants of her wetness from Luke’s body. Luke mimicked her motions and cleaned the evidence of their lovemaking from her body. They quickly rinsed off and exited the shower.

As they each grabbed a towel and began to dry themselves off, Luke could feel Mara gazing at him intently as she pondered their time in the shower. “Is something wrong?” he asked gently.

“Do you realize that we did not speak even one word to each other the whole time we were in the shower?” Mara answered in awe. “But even without speaking, we knew instinctively the things that would please the other. Sometimes the intensity of our bond and our relationship scares me, Luke,” she whispered. “We are two halves of a single being. What would happen to either of us if something happened to the other?” She did not expect an answer to her question, it was purely rhetorical.

Mara’s comment forced Luke’s mind to return to his other vision, with her scream in his mind and her sudden absence to him within the Force. A shudder ran up his spine as he quickly reburied the image in his mind. They were happy. He wasn’t going to allow anyone or anything to change that, whatever it took. “Nothing is going to happen to separate us, Mara,” Luke replied trying to put more conviction in his voice than the memory of the vision would allow. “Now let’s get dressed and get some breakfast. All that exercise has given me quite an appetite,” he added chuckling.

Luke dressed quickly and was securing his belt around his waist while Mara was still getting out her clothing. “I’ll go makes us some breakfast,” he stated. “Any preferences?”

“Surprise me,” Mara quipped. “You know how much I like surprises.” She felt a flicker in Luke’s emotions as she said the word surprises and looked at him intently. “Okay Skywalker,” she barbed. “What are you up to?”

“Me, up to something? Not me,” Luke retorted wearing an expression of innocence that rivaled Han Solo’s best. “Hurry up and get dressed so we can eat,” he added walking to the kitchen.

As he felt Mara return her attention to selecting clothes, Luke let out a sigh of relief. He would have to guard his thoughts and emotions more closely until he was able to give her the present. He walked quickly to the communication console to contact Wedge before Mara finished dressing. Keying the code for Wedge’s office, Luke only waited a few seconds before he replied.

“Antilles, here,” Wedge said into his comlink.

“Hey Wedge, its me,” Luke said softly. “I will be bringing Mara to the ship as soon as we are done breakfast. Would you like to meet us there?”

“I’d love to,” Wedge replied. “ I’ll give you a few minutes to give her a quick tour and then meet up with you. Mind if Iella joins us?”

“That would be great,” Luke said. “Once we give the girls the full tour, we’ll take you guys to lunch. Gotta go, Mara will be out soon.”

“See you soon, Luke” Wedge replied as he heard the connection being severed. Remembering their discussion from last night, he began to grin. Luke must have been successful diverting Mara’s attention. He did not sound like he had suffered too much. He contacted his wife and arranged for her to meet him at his office. This should be a fun afternoon.

Luke had reentered the kitchen and was breaking eggs into a bowl, when Mara emerged from their bedroom. “Hi beautiful,” he teased. “Hungry?”

“Famished. What’s taking you so long, Farmboy? ” Mara bantered back. “I expected to come out and find my breakfast on the table,” she added. She walked behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.

“We are going to have to focus on some techniques to increase your patience level,” Luke retorted as he emptied the content of his bowl into the waiting pan. “Go drink your juice and I will have it ready in a minute.”

As Mara picked up her juice and sat down at the counter, she decided to again try to get Luke to slip up about whatever he was hiding. “So what exactly do we have to do after breakfast?” she asked, stretching out to gauge his reaction.

Sensing her ploy, Luke replied. “Just a few things, it shouldn’t take too long. If you are a good girl maybe I’ll take you out to lunch after,” he added teasingly. He had made it this far; he wasn’t going to give it away now. He placed Mara’s plate in front of her, went back to make one for himself and sat down next to her. They chatted as they ate, just enjoying being in each other’s company.

Once they had finished eating, Luke rose from his seat. “Let’s get going, Mara,” he said as he pulled her to his feet. He helped her into her jacket and tossed his cloak over his shoulders. Taking her hand in his, he led her through the door and they began walking down the corridor. They left their building and walked rapidly, with Luke directing their path without telling Mara where they were headed. After a few minutes, they had arrived in the Rogue Squadron repair bay.

Mara stopped walking, pulled on Luke’s hand and looked at him questioningly. “What are we doing here?” she asked. “Isn’t Wedge in his office?” she added, trying to figure out why Wedge would be in the repair bay.

“He’s tinkering with his X-wing,” Luke fibbed. He was relieved that this would be the last lie he would have to tell. “It’s berthed in the back of the hanger,” he added, pointing as he pulled gently on her arm and started walking that direction. Once they reached the X-wing, Luke looked around intently as if searching for Wedge. He turned back to face Mara and smirked as he watched her looking at the shuttle intently.

“Do you know who that ship belongs to Luke?” Mara asked, shifting her gaze between the shuttle and his face. “I have seen a lot of ships over the years but this one is pretty impressive - at least from the outside,” she added as her eyes roamed over the contours of the ship.

“It is a pretty nice looking ship, “Luke said, trying to keep the amusement from his voice. “Would you like to see the inside? I know the owner and I am sure he wouldn’t mind,” he added lightly.

Mara’s face lit up in anticipation. “I would love to see the inside. Are you sure the owner won’t mind Luke? she asked.

“I am sure,” Luke replied as he keyed the code into the controller hidden in his pocket. He was leading her towards the ship when the ramp opened. He enjoyed her puzzled look as he led her into the ship.

*****************

Watching Mara and Luke’s repartee from their vantage point further down the bay, Wedge and Iella began to laugh. “I still can’t believe that the ultra honest, totally open Jedi Master Luke Skywalker was able to keep a secret of this magnitude from his Force sensitive wife,” Iella joked. “Along with the fact that you have been helping him all along and have not shared that information with me, Antilles,” she added sarcastically. “Though I must admit most Corellians are pretty good at keeping secrets. Are there any other secrets you are keeping from me?”

“I couldn’t tell you sweetheart,” Wedge said apologetically. “Luke was afraid that Mara would be able to sense you keeping a secret from her. “ Kissing her lightly on the lips he added, “I would never even try to keep any other secrets from you.”

****************

Luke took Mara along the same tour path he and the others had previously taken. As they entered the cargo bay, she stopped and looking around longingly. “The owner of this ship must be a trader to have a cargo area this size,” she said as they returned to the corridor.

Luke led her into the hangar as he replied. “Trading has played an important part in the owners’ lives. Now they have moved on to other things.”

“They must have, as this hangar looks big enough to carry two fighters or small shuttles,” Mara stated as she looked around.

Luke was thoroughly enjoying Mara’s reaction to the sections she had seen but wondered how much longer he would be able to keep up this charade. As he opened the door to their cabin, he knew that very shortly the game would be up. He had barely finished the thought, when his prediction became reality.

Looking around the main cabin, Mara was surprised by the furnishings. The suite looked like it belonged in a luxury hotel. As she walked into the bedroom area, she noticed something that stopped her cold. Turning back, she noticed that her husband had stopped just inside the door and was looking at her intently. “Skywalker,” she said in the icy tone that she was famous for. She lifted her hand and motioned for him to come to where she was standing. As he took his place beside her, she proceeded to pick up a small, framed picture from the nightstand. “Could you explain to me why the owner of this vessel would have our wedding picture by their bed?” she bit out venomously.

Luke took a deep, calming breath before he answered. “Because the owners of this vessel like to look at mementos from the happiest day of their lives.” He took Mara’s hands in his before he continued. “Everything you see before you is my gift to you. You sacrificed so much for us and for the New Republic. It is only fitting that you receive a replacement for at least part of your sacrifice.”

Once he finished speaking Luke stepped back, unsure whether his wife would hug him or swing at him. She looked around the room as if trying to imprint the scene into her memory. Finally, after what seemed to Luke an eternity, Mara spoke. “Are you saying that this ship belongs to me?” She whispered her question, with disbelief overshadowing all her other emotions.

Luke looked at her lovingly as he replied. “Yes, Mara, she is yours. I know she will never replace the ‘Fire’ in your heart but hopefully she will be a suitable substitute.” He probed her, trying to gauge her emotions. He knew that what she was seeing and hearing presently overwhelmed her. But soon, she would recover and realize how long he had been keeping this from her. When that happened, anything was possible.

Mara walked slowly around the suite as if trying to absorb her surroundings. She would stop briefly from time to time, picking up and examining random items, some of which Luke had brought there and others that were part of the décor.  
She looked at Luke intently as she spied a wooden and glass display case lying on the table in the sitting area. She ran her hand along the dark wood as she spoke. “What is the case for? The craftsmanship on it is impeccable.”

“It is a case to store our lightsabers,” Luke replied. “I asked Chewie if he could contact one of the craftsmen on Kashyyyk to construct a case for me.” He opened the glass door and ran his fingertips along the back of the case before continuing. “Three weeks ago, he showed up at the apartment when you were gone out with Leia and gave this to me. He made it himself, with wood from Kashyyyk and glass from Tatooine.” He smiled warmly remembering the scene. “I was overwhelmed that he would have done that for us and when I tried to thank him he started to howl. He said it was the least he could do for his….., cub is the closest translation I can come up with.”

Mara laughed at the thought of Chewie calling Luke his cub. “He and Solo seem to be under the impression that you are still that young, naïve Farmboy they rescued from Tatooine twenty years ago.” She looked seductively at her husband before she added, “you may still be my Farmboy, and you act relatively young but naïve no longer applies, at least most of the time.” Suddenly, she looked as if she had just had a revelation and glared at him with anger beginning to flash in her eyes. “Did you say he brought this to you three weeks ago, Skywalker?” she said sharply. “How long have you been working on this surprise?” she added in a raised but icy tone, as she moved directly in front of him.

Luke took a deep breath and realized that Corran and Artoo’s predictions may be coming true. He reached out to send a quick mental prod to Wedge, hoping he was waiting somewhere close by. Choosing his words carefully he began. “Well Mara, a project of this caliber is not organized overnight. It takes time to create plans, secure facilities, and find workmen,….. “ Luke tried to continue but was harshly silenced.

“Enough stalling Jedi,” Mara bit out sarcastically. “How long have you been working on this? Three weeks, a month, six weeks? It is a relatively simple question, even for you.”

Luke was glad Mara no longer regularly wore her holdout blaster as he readied himself for her full wrath. “ I have been working on this for a little over four months," he replied. “ I started creating the specifications and looking for a company to build it shortly after we returned from our honeymoon.” As he waited for the implication of his reply to sink in, he was thankful to hear Wedge and Iella coming up the ship’s ramp. Maybe they would buy him at least a short reprieve.

“Four months,” Mara repeated icily. “You have been keeping a secret from me for four months.” She was so furious, she was almost shaking. They shared each other’s souls. How could he have kept a secret of this magnitude from her for four months? What other secrets was he keeping from her?

Hearing her thoughts, Luke took her hands in his and looked at her intently. “ I have no other secrets from you, Mara,” he said softly. “How could I make it a surprise if I didn’t keep it a secret?” A quick flash of guilt passed over him as he remembered his second vision from this morning. Now was not the time, but he would definitely tell her once she calmed down. He had known she would be upset but he had not expected it to be this bad.

Hearing Luke’s last thought, Mara pulled her hands from his and backed away. “What did you expect, Skywalker. We promised to be totally open with each other always, not just when it’s convenient,” she retorted.

Luke decided to change his approach. “Mara, I kept a secret to give you a present. It’s not like you just found out I was keeping a mistress.” He had to help her to put this into perspective.

Mara started to reply when she heard a noise behind her. She turned and glared at the couple in the doorway.

“Is it safe to come in?” Wedge asked trying to keep the laughter from his voice. He looked from Luke to Mara and back to Luke before turning to Iella. He winked at her as he continued to work on suppressing his laughter. He did not want to become the object of Mara’s wrath by laughing at her.

“Come on in,” Luke beckoned to the couple. As he turned back to look at his wife, he realized he may have spoken too soon.

Mara stared at Wedge with an icy, penetrating glare as she recollected her brush with Luke’s thoughts from earlier. After a moment, she shifted that glare back to her husband. “Was Antilles in on this with you from the beginning, Skywalker?” she snapped.

As Wedge scanned the couple’s faces, he actually felt sorry for Luke. He had worked so hard to make this happen and all Mara could focus on was the secret. He looked over at Iella, shrugged his shoulders and nodded in Mara’s direction. Maybe his wife could help Mara see things more clearly.

Iella walked over to her friend and rested her hand on Mara’s shoulder. She nodded to Luke and motioned for him to leave the room. She thought her likelihood of success would be higher if Luke was out of visual range.

***************

Luke and Wedge left the suite, softly closing the door behind them, and began walking to the bridge. Wedge looked over at his friend and could no longer contain his laughter. “Don’t worry, Luke, she’ll calm down,” he chuckled. “You better hope you don’t do too many other things to make her that mad. She is like a charging bantha when she is upset, “ he added as he started laughing heartily again.

“You’re not on her good side either right now, Wedge,” Luke replied with a nervous laugh. “Let’s hope that Iella is able to help her see reason or we may not survive to give them the rest of the tour or take them to lunch.” He plopped himself into the first seat he reached on the bridge and sighed heavily. “I knew she would be upset but I really did not expect this severe a reaction. Maybe I should have given more thought to how my keeping a secret would affect her. She has been lied to and manipulated most of her life. I should have realized,” he added in an exasperated tone.

*****************

“Mara, take a deep breath and try to calm down,” Iella said in a reassuring voice. She wanted to help her friend get through this. They had become friends a few years ago, when they had both attended numerous functions in the Horn and Terrik families. They had taken a liking to each other right away. They were strong, independent and physically active women and enjoyed spending time together. Sometimes they ran, worked out, played sling-ball and other times they just talked about trading, politics, Corsec, New Republic Intelligence and many other things. The fact that their husbands were such close friends was an added bonus.

“Iella, I can’t believe he did this,” Mara said still seething with anger. “Between our Force bond and all the promises we made to each other, I don’t know how he could keep something from me. I had the feeling that he was hiding something from me at times, but never expected it to be something this big,” she added, flopping onto the small sofa.

Sitting down next to her, Iella looked at her friend intently. Although she could not understand why Mara was so upset, she could easily see that she was in turmoil. “Mara, have you calmed down enough to think this through rationally?” she asked.

Mara took deep breaths and used Luke’s relaxation techniques to dissipate her anger. It took a few minutes but eventually she was calmer. “I am as calm as I think I am going to get Iella, “ Mara replied tensely.

“Okay then, let’s look at the facts,” Iella began. “Luke had this magnificent ship built for you. He spent the last four months working with Wedge to make sure that everything was perfect.” She paused and looked closely at Mara to be sure she was listening and then she continued. “He, Wedge and Corran spent the entire day yesterday stocking the ship so you wouldn’t have to do anything when you were ready to take her out. Do I have the facts straight so far?” she asked sternly.

“Yes, but Iella you don’t…….,” Mara started saying but was quickly cut off.

“It was a yes or no question, Mara,” Iella said bluntly.

“Then, yes,” Mara answered softly.

“Okay, so Luke did all those wonderful things for you but you did not know about them because he wanted it to be a surprise,” Iella said. “I guess I don’t see what the problem is. I know you have kept little secrets of your own. Remember the sling-ball match before the wedding? Haven’t you done anything for him that was a surprise, Mara?” She waited quietly for Mara to answer.

“Yes, I remember,” she said as her mind recalled their match against Champion Squadron days before the wedding. All six of them had decided that it was best if they didn’t tell their husbands. “And I have planned surprises for him but it is not the same thing, Iella,” Mara answered in a pained tone. “My relationship with Luke is different. I know that you and Wedge love each other, but you are not bonded in the Force.” She stopped speaking and looked down at her hands as if trying to find a way to explain it to her. “We can communicate without speaking, we share each other’s thoughts and feelings. I told him this morning that at times the depth of our bond scares me, but Iella this petrifies me.” She paused again to focus her thoughts. “I don’t know if I can make you understand. If he can build a mental barrier strong enough to keep a secret like this from me for such a long period of time, he could hide anything.” She looked over at the nightstand where their wedding picture was displayed. “I have been lied to and have had secrets kept from me for most of my life. I don’t know if I will ever be able to trust Luke again.” She buried her face in her hands, trying to hold back the tears that were starting to form.

Iella reached over and lifted Mara’s face towards her. “Look at me, Mara,” she said softly. “Now I want you to listen to me carefully. Has Luke ever given you any reason not to trust him? Hasn’t he always been there for you, even before you realized that you loved each other?” She paused as she wiped a tear from her friend’s face. “This may have been a secret but it was a good secret. He loves you with all his heart and soul and wanted to give you this gift to make up for all the pain and suffering you have endured. He was trying to do something wonderful, don’t let your fear taint it,” she added in a voice filled with concern.

Mara sat for a long time considering Iella’s words. ‘Am I overreacting?’ she thought. Luke had never given her any reason not to trust him so why was she letting her old fears surface again. She was being a fool. She turned to her friend and took her hand. “Thank you for being the voice of reason, Iella,” she said in a voice heavy with emotion. “I almost allowed my old fears and insecurities ruin the best thing that has happened in my entire life. I think I need to talk to my husband.”

“Why don’t you take a minute to pull yourself together and I'll go get him for you,” Iella said as she rose from the sofa. She kept her eyes locked on Mara’s face as she waited for a response.

“Okay,” Mara said softly. “And Iella, thank you for being such a good friend.”

“You’re welcome. I am sure at some point you will get the chance to return the favor,” Iella joked. “Wedge and I have our moments.”

****************

Iella left the suite and walked quickly to the bridge. Luke must have heard or felt her approaching as he was walking towards her as she entered. His face was full of concern and her heart went out to him. She smiled warmly at her husband before she spoke. “Mara would like to see you Luke.”

“Is she alright, Iella?” Luke said in a quavering voice. “I could feel the pain and fear radiating from her. It was so intense that I could barely stand it.”

“She will be fine now, Luke,” Iella replied. “Why don’t you go see for yourself.”

“Thanks, Iella, for everything.” Luke said softly. He left the bridge and walked towards the cabin.

Iella moved to her husband and wrapped her arms around his waist. “You know Wedge, there have been times that I have been envious of Luke and Mara’s relationship. I thought that the ability to share each other’s thoughts and feelings would always be a plus.” She kissed him deeply before she continued. “But after today, I am not so sure. She was in such pain from the knowledge that he could keep something from her and he felt that pain as strongly as if it were his own.”

“Luke is probably the strongest person I know,” Wedge said thoughtfully. “But watching what he went through out here, I don’t think I could handle it.” Looking at Iella intently he added, “I worry about you and the girls enough without feeling every thought and emotion you have. I like things just the way they are.” He pulled his wife into his arms and held her tightly.

**************

Luke took a deep breath before opening the door to the cabin. As he entered, he scanned the rooms for his wife and found her seated on their bed. As he got closer, he saw that she was holding their wedding picture in her hands. Reaching the bed, he sat down beside her and placed his hands over hers. “Mara, I am so sorry I hurt you,” he whispered. “I wanted this to be such a wonderful surprise but I never considered the impact that this secret would have on you.” He pulled her to him so that her head was leaning on his chest.

Mara sat there, drawing strength from Luke for quite some time before she spoke. “No Luke,” she said in a soft but emotionally charged voice. “I am the one who should be sorry. I overreacted, allowing all my old fears and insecurities to surface just because you kept a secret from me.” She took a deep breath as if afraid to continue. “Will you ever be able to forgive me?”

Luke’s heart lifted at the knowledge that everything would be fine. “There is nothing to forgive, my love,” he said. “Let’s learn from this unpleasant experience and move on.” He looked at her intently, deciding that he might as well tell her about the second vision and get everything out in the open. “There is something else I have to tell you, Mara.”

Looking at his serious expression, Mara decided that they had suffered enough for one day. “Can it wait until later, Farmboy?” she said with the beginning of a grin forming on her lips. “I would really like to tour the rest of my present. Also we are being rather rude to our guests,” she added laughing lightly.

“Let me know when you are ready,” Luke replied. Patting the bed with his hand, he added teasingly, “Maybe we should start the rest of the tour right here. This needs to be broken in.” He was rewarded with an impish expression that encompassed her entire face.

Her emerald eyes twinkled at him as she spoke. “Have you forgotten about our guests, Luke? I think we have kept them waiting long enough.”

Mara reached for Luke’s hand as she started to rise from the bed and was quickly pulled down upon it. He brought her face to his and kissed her deeply. Reluctantly, after a few moments he released her. “They probably wouldn’t mind waiting. I could even send Wedge a mental prod that the other cabins are unoccupied, “he laughed.

It was Mara’s turn to kiss Luke passionately. As she released his lips, she smiled seductively. “I will gladly repay you for your patience and suffering later this evening. I promise it will be worth the wait.”

“I will hold you to that promise,” Luke laughed as he pulled Mara to her feet. “Something to look forward to.”

*****************

Wedge and Iella were still standing comfortably in each other’s embrace, when they walked onto the bridge. Luke looked at his wife and smiled. * I told you I should have prodded them to the cabin * he sent. Luke cleared his throat to get their attention before he spoke. “Are you guys ready to continue the tour?”

“Sure,” Wedge answered, grinning at his wife. He was very happy to see that Luke and Mara had solved their difference of opinion. ‘Luckily, he has not suffered any bodily injury, either,’ he thought. Although they could not read each others thought, Wedge was pretty sure that Iella’s matched his own. “Where do you want to start, Mara?” he asked.

“Would you mind if we went back and started at the beginning?” Mara questioned. “Now that I know she belongs to us, I definitely want to examine her more closely.”

“No problem,” Wedge replied. He took Iella’s hand in his and led her back down the corridor. “I did not have a chance to show Iella anything before we went to your cabin. I was concerned time may be of the essence in arriving there,” he chuckled.

Luke took Mara’s hand as they hurried to join Wedge and Iella in the corridor. They walked through it until they were once again in the repair bay. Turning to Mara, Luke spoke as he reached to put something into her hand. “This belongs to you.”

Looking down, Mara saw that he had placed a small controller into her palm. “So this is how you lowered the ramp when we arrived,” she said as she made the connection. “And here you had me believing that you had developed a new Force power, Master,” she teased.

“I am sure I could have found a way but this was much easier,” Luke replied as they began walking up the ramp. He led the group back into the cargo area and stopped there. He and Wedge stepped back while the girls looked around.

They walked slowly around the bay, as if inspecting ever nook and cranny, speaking softly to each other as they did. “You may have to go back into the trading business, Mara,” Iella joked. “It would be a shame for this bay to be unused.”

“ I can always use it to transport some proper furnishings to our quarters on Yavin,” Mara said. She raised her voice slightly so that Luke would hear her. “I require a few more creature comforts that the austere Master over there.”

They had finished inspecting the area and were walking back to the men as Luke replied. “Some of us have not been spoiled by luxuries,” he taunted back, happy to see that things were returning to normal. “Let’s move on, shall we.” They reentered the corridor momentarily until they got to the hangar bay and entered it. Luke was surprise to see his X-wing berthed there. He looked over at Wedge questioningly and his friend grinned widely.

“I had it moved into the repair bay earlier this morning and had Artoo bring it in once you two entered your cabin,” Wedge said. “Though I think he is ready to come down from there and join the party. Here, I will no longer be needing this,” he added, slipping another controller into Luke’s hand.

Luke laughed heartily as Artoo loudly warbled his agreement with Wedge’s statement. “Ready, Two,” he asked as he extended himself and began to lift him from the droid socket.

Luke felt the surge of Mara joining her power to his before she spoke. “Allow me,” she said as she took control of Artoo’s decent. When the droid’s wheels touched the ground, he rolled quickly to Mara, warbling excitedly as he moved. She patted his dome affectionately as she addressed him. “I can’t believe you let him do something that would get him in so much trouble Artoo,” she chuckled. He warbled rapidly and directed a rather rude noise at Luke, without leaving her side. “I am sure you tried to warn him, but he doesn’t listen to you either,” she added laughing heartily.

“Look you two,” Luke added laughing himself. “I don’t need you ganging up on me.” He turned to Wedge and added, “I guess I was too focused on other things to notice that Artoo was no longer in the alcove when we walked by. Thanks for moving the ship.”

Iella looked from Luke to Mara before turning to Wedge. “You spend as much time, if not more, with Gate as they spend with Artoo. I know you can understand a few phrases but you can’t carry on a conversation with him. How do they do that?” she stated in a very perplexed tone.

Wedge just shrugged his shoulders, so Mara took him off the hook. “Luke’s been able to talk to him for as long as I have known him, but Artoo has to slow down the rate of his beeps for me to understand. A lot of it is tone and inflection, too.” She looked at the droid before she continued. “If he needs to give us a lot of information, we still need to run it through the computer or a data pad to get everything.” Seeing all the room that was left in the hangar, she turned to Luke and added teasingly. ”I guess I will have to acquire a fighter of my own. I always liked my Headhunter, maybe I will look to get another one.”

“Listen to her, you guys,” Luke teased. “I give her this great ship and already she wants more.’’ Turning to Wedge, he winked. “Just can’t keep these women happy, can we.”

Wedge knew better than to answer from the look Iella was giving him, so he just laughed and shrugged. He was happy to see things were back to normal with Luke and Mara though.

Grabbing Luke’s hand, Mara pulled him through the door. “If you can’t set a better pace than this, Skywalker, I will have to get a new tour guide. I like to see the rest of the ship sometime today,” she barbed.

They moved back down the corridor, with Mara looking in all the storage cabinets, inspecting the small medical bay, and scrutinizing the barracks. She stopped when the reached the droid alcove. Looking over at Artoo, she turned to Luke and saw he was smiling at her.

“Already had it taken care of, Mara,” Luke explained. “The Rogue’s computer technician came and configured a port specifically for Artoo and, much to Artoo’s dismay, one for C3PO. He left the back up port set up with a generic interface.”

“I knew all that time I have spent training you would come in handy,” Mara teased. She turned to Artoo and added. “Hopefully Goldenrod won’t have to travel with us too often.” Artoo warbled his agreement, especially of Mara’s use of Han’s derogatory nickname for the protocol droid.

When they reached the bridge, Mara looked around somewhat awed but also very perplexed. She had flown enough larger ships to know that this bridge would require a six-man crew to staff fully. She was surprised that Luke had not designed the specifications for a two-man crew.

Wedge began to laugh as he addressed Mara. “When he first saw the bridge, Luke had exactly the same reaction you are having now. You can staff all six stations or you can relay the functions from them to the command station and run the ship with only two people.” As he watched Mara lower herself into the pilot seat, he added chuckling softly. “You will be happy to know that Luke knew his place from his first moments on this bridge. When he sat down yesterday, it was in the copilot seat.”

Mara looked at her husband and laughed. “Glad to know that you are so comfortable with the command structure of our relationship.”

Luke laughed then allowed his wife to slowly take in her surroundings before he finally spoke. “So what do you think, Mara. Will she do?” he asked softly as he positioned himself behind her seat.

Pulling him around the seat so he was facing her, she looked at him intently while composing her thoughts. “She is the most exquisite gift anyone has ever given me,” Mara said in an emotion packed voice. “I can only think of two things that are more precious to me,” she added softly as she stared into his eyes.

*Two things? * Luke sent back questioningly as he lowered himself on his haunches so that his eyes were in line with hers. Her emerald eyes shone brightly as she sent back her reply to his silent question. * Yes, two things. You, Farmboy and the child that I hope will soon be growing within me. * She brought her hand to her abdomen as she pondered that thought.

***************

Wedge and Iella quietly moved back down the corridor to give the couple some privacy. “It is a wonder that they don’t burn up in the intensity of their passion,” she said. “Did you notice the little gesture she made, Wedge? Do you think she is pregnant?” It was as if all had become clear as she added, “that could explain her emotional state and her severe overreaction to this whole thing.”

“You would be more likely to know the answer to that question than I,” Wedge replied to his wife. “Though with all the time we have spent together recently, I think Luke would have been unable to contain his joy if she were pregnant. He has wanted children for so long.”

***************

They remained in that position, totally lost in each other, for quite some time before Luke looked up and realized that they were alone on the bridge, except for Artoo who was accessing the ship’s computer. Laughing, he stood up and pulled Mara up with him. “We had better go find our guests before they get into trouble. Artoo, we will be back after lunch.” Hearing the droid’s reply, they walked down the corridor, getting almost to the cargo bay, before they reached Wedge and Iella. “So what do you think of her, Iella?” Luke asked.

“She is magnificent, “ Iella replied. “She'll make every gift I receive in the future pale in comparison. Maybe you will loan her to us if I can ever convince the General here to take a vacation,” she added winking at Wedge.

Luke mentally requested his wife’s approval before he replied. “Anytime, just let us know. Are you guys ready for lunch?”

“About two hours ago,” Wedge chuckled. “In case you forgot, I started my day at 0600.”

As the two couples exited the ship, Mara looked back over her gift as she keyed the controller to close the ramp. She knew she would never be as attached to this ship as she had been to the ‘Jade’s Fire’. The ‘Fire’ had equated to freedom for her for so many years, but she no longer needed that avenue of escape. Whatever paths and possibilities the Force had in store for her, she and Luke would face together. But this ship would have a special hold on her heart that even the 'Fire' didn't have. Because it was a gift from Luke. Taking his hand, she asked lightly, “So where are you taking us for lunch, Skywalker?” Turning to Iella, she added in a teasing tone. “So many possibilities - the Center Bistro, the Gourmet Loft, the Alderanian Gardens….” She and Iella began to laugh as they saw the expressions on their husbands’ faces.

“I was thinking more of the Flight Deck but if you girls want to go to one of those places I guess we can,” Luke answered dejectedly, looking to Wedge for moral support. Neither he nor Wedge were very comfortable at fancy places, preferring the more homey places that the pilots hung out.

“The Flight Deck is fine,” Mara answered. She laughed as she saw Luke and Wedge’s simultaneous sighs of relief. Turning to Iella she added, “at some point we are going have to make these two take us to a nice place. These pilot hangouts are getting a little old.” They all exited the bay and went out onto one of the cities elevated walkways. The restaurant was only a few blocks down and they figured a short walk would do them good.

As they entered the restaurant, the owner came over and greeted them warmly. “Good afternoon, General Antilles, Master Skywalker and ladies. Would you like a table for lunch?”

“Yes, thank you,” Wedge responded and they were led to what, over the past months, had become Luke and Wedge’s table. They had met here on numerous occasions to discuss the ship. “Looks like this will bring an end to our working lunches, Luke,” Wedge chuckled. “We will have to find a new excuse to eat here.” As the waiter came over with the menus, although he knew that Wedge and Luke would not even glance at them, he asked what they wanted to drink. Wedge replied quickly, “Corellian Ales, all around. This definitely rates as a celebration in my book.”

Mara tapped the waiter on the shoulder and said softly, “please make mine non-alcoholic. She looked up to see Iella studying her intently.

“Okay, Mara,” Iella said softly. “Is there something you should be sharing?” She knew that Mara usually enjoyed having a drink when they went out. She also knew that she had been using repress meds since shortly before the wedding. This, coupled with her behavior earlier, made her wonder if something had changed.

Wedge and Luke were talking animatedly and had not heard Iella’s question. Looking at her friend, Mara blushed slightly. “Nothing to share just yet, but I am hoping that will change sometime real soon,” she whispered.

The waiter had just finished putting the ales on the table, when they heard a familiar voice in the background. “You guys having a party and I wasn’t invited,” came Corran’s laughing voice. “I see you survived, Master. Good afternoon, Mara, Iella. Aren’t you sick of Luke’s company yet, Wedge?” he added pulling up a chair. “You don’t mind if I join you?”

Luke could see Mara’s puzzled expression so he figured he had better explain. “I was with Wedge, Corran and Han at the ship when you reached out to me last night. I rejected their Corellian plans on how I was going to explain being back early and they were taking bets on the odds of me surviving the night,” he added grinning somewhat nervously.

Mara began to laugh and looked at Luke playfully. * You did a very good job of distracting me without any help from them, * she sent. Looking at Corran she added verbally, “you three Corellians have only been successful at getting into trouble not out of it.

“I’ll second that opinion,” Iella added. “Luke must have become Corellian by osmosis, so I would have to increase the group to four. Anytime at least two of them are together, trouble follows,” she chuckled looking straight at her husband.

“Plus just because Luke is in one piece now, doesn’t mean he will stay that way,” Mara said shifting her gaze to her husband. “There is still the matter of retribution for your deception, Skywalker and you never know when or where it will occur.”

Hearing Luke groan, Corran said chuckling. “The offer to spar with you still stands, Master. It looks like you may need to brush up on your skills after all.”

The group continued talking and laughing for over an hour, enjoying each other’s company and their lunch. Wedge ended up being the one to break up the party. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I have played hooky long enough. Even Generals have to do some work,” he said grinning as he helped his wife from her chair.

Luke stood up and extended his hand to his friend. “Thanks for everything, Wedge, he said sincerely. “As I said before, I don’t how I will ever repay you.”

“There is always your firstborn,” Wedge laughed turning to look at the expression of disbelief that shone on Mara’s face.

“I would be more concerned with pay back for your part in this endeavor, Antilles,” Mara barbed as you stood beside Luke.

“I am glad I was only involved after the fact,” Corran chuckled. “You two better watch your backs,” he added as he walked from the table. “See you all soon.”

Luke and Mara stood and watched as the others left the restaurant. “We are lucky to have such good friends,” he said as he signed the check.

“That’s true,” Mara replied as they began walking to the door. “But your association with them also increases your penchant for trouble, as incredible as that may seem.”

They walked back to the ship. Luke enjoyed sensing Mara’s pleasure as it came into view. “There are a few things we still need to take care of,” he said as they entered the ramp. “The permanent registration needs to be completed, but first you need to give her a name. Any Ideas?” he asked as they entered their cabin.

Mara stood for a moment, deep in thought, before she began looking around the room. This was their ship, not just hers, and she wanted the name to signify the depth of their life together. Her roaming eyes came to rest on the display case on the table and began to sparkle. ‘Yes, that will be perfect,’ she thought. “I do have a suggestion, as long as you agree,” she answered, looking intently at Luke.

When she did not continue, Luke spoke. “Are you going to tell me or do I have to guess?”

“The Jade Saber,” Mara replied looking at Luke to see his reaction. She was rewarded with a bright smile twinkling in his deep blue eyes.

“The Jade Saber,” Luke repeated softly. “That’s perfect,” he added pulling Mara into his embrace and kissing her gently. “Just perfect.” After a few moments, he released her. “Let’s head over to the registry office to get this taken care of. That way she will be ready to go when you decide where we are taking her on her maiden voyage,” he added.

They exited the ship and proceeded to the registry office. Luke was happy to see Wyatt at the counter as they approached it. “Good afternoon, Wyatt,” he said warmly. “This is my wife, Mara.”

“Good afternoon, Master Skywalker,” Wyatt replied. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Mrs. Skywalker. I assume you are here to complete the registration for your ship.” Walking to the desk, he quickly retrieved a pile of papers and returned to the counter. “You have decided on a name, then?” he asked.

“Yes we have,” Mara said.

Flipping through the pages, Wyatt instructed Mara. “Please sign on lines 35, 53, and 73 and fill in the name of the ship on lines 38 and 76.” Once she had finished, he picked up the papers and quickly took them to the desk. He proceeded to place the registry seal over the signatures and ship’s name and quickly made a duplicate. “Here is your copy of the registration. You can destroy the temporary one I gave you yesterday, Master Skywalker. The original will remain on file here,” he said.

“Thank you for all your help, Wyatt,” Luke said as he was handed the registration. They turned and left the office, quickly returning to the ship. After filing the registration in the desk, he turned to Mara. “Are you ready to head home or would you like to stay here longer?”

“Let’s head home for now,” Mara replied. They walked to the bridge, motioned for Artoo to join them and started down the ramp. As Mara reached for the controller to secure the ramp, her hand brushed against her lightsaber. This gave her an idea for something she could do to help alleviate the tension that remained from their disagreement. She did not handle emotional outbursts very well and was left feeling extremely tense for hours afterwards.

As they exited the hangar, she turned to see Luke studying her closely. “You look deep in thought, Mara. Not planning retribution, I hope,” he joked.

“Not yet,” Mara teased back. “I plan on waiting until after you let your guard down. I was thinking that I could use a little exercise.” Seeing the twinkle in his blue eyes, she added, “not that kind, Farmboy.”

“Well what kind of exercise did you have in mind?” Luke asked.

“I was thinking maybe we could stop and see if there is a sparring room available at the gym, on our way back,” Mara said. “We could get in a little lightsaber practice. I need to make sure that you skills have not atrophied while I’ve been away.”

Although Luke knew the real reason behind Mara’s request, he played along. “You just think you have a chance to best me if I am out of practice. Sure let’s try.”

They chatted as they walked and were happy to find a sparring room open when the arrived at the gym. Booking it for an hour, they continued into the locker area. “Let me grab an exercise shirt first, Luke,” Mara said as she opened their locker. “Do you need one?”

“No, I have one under this,” Luke said as he pulled his black tunic over his head and threw it in the locker. Noting that the locker room was empty save for the two of them, Mara proceeded to change her shirt. Luke marveled at how quickly his body reacted to the sight of her with only that small piece of satin and lace covering her upper body. His desire for her had not diminished one bit since their first night on Altrann. Feeling her glaring at him, he shifted his gaze back to her face as she pulled on her shirt.

“Focus your attention back to our current plans, Skywalker,” Mara said sarcastically but with the hint of a smile playing on her lips. She knew that their relationship went much deeper than the physical, but she loved the effect the sight of her had on Luke. The loss of his tightly held control that she could so readily bring about, made him much more human.

“Ready,” Luke called sheepishly as they moved into the sparring room. He unhooked his lightsaber from his belt and took a deep breath to center himself. With Mara funneling all that tension into her efforts, he would need to be free from distractions to stay one step ahead of her. They took positions opposite each other within the sparring circle. Mara unhooked her lightsaber from her belt and engaged the blade. She took a few sweeping swings to adjust her grip and saw Luke do the same as he ignited his.

As always, Mara knew that Luke would stand there looking rather nonchalant until she made the first move. Deciding to use a somewhat unorthodox strategy, she flipped herself over Luke to land behind him before she even swung her blade. He reacted quickly and had brought his blade up to parry hers by the time her feet hit the ground.

Thus the match began, with Mara taking the offensive, thrusting and attacking, stepping and shifting, always looking for an opening in his defenses. But Luke was not about to give her one. He parried and blocked, side stepped and moved, continually keeping her at bay. Mara continued making adjustments to her stance, swing and movements, attempting to bypass his defenses. Luke was happy to see her staying in tune with the Force and not allowing her heightened stress level to temper her movements. The physical exertion felt good to both of them. They had been so busy tending to administrative duties during their trips; they had not had much time to exercise.

They had been sparring for quite some time when Luke felt a shift in Mara’s senses. He was extremely surprised to see her step back from him and disengage her blade. “The hour is just about up, Skywalker,” she said. Attaching her saber to her belt she added, “that was a good workout. I really needed it.”

Luke stood there watching her in disbelief. Mara always pushed them both to the limit in everything but especially when sparring. She was intensely competitive and always wanted to best him. This was the first time she had ever ended a sparring match herself. He usually had to finally take the offensive in order to end it. This was an interesting change in her behavior, albeit a rather confusing one.

Mara looked at him watching her and could sense his confusion. Although she had not done it intentionally, confusing him was a great side benefit. Even though she wasn’t sure why she had looked at the chrono and decided to stop, it wouldn’t hurt to keep him guessing. Noticing that he was walking towards the lockers, she said, “Ready to go home?”

Still confused, Luke answered. “Sure, unless there is something else you want to do first.”

Artoo rolled over and followed them to the locker room. “Not really,” Mara said. Grabbing their shirts from the locker, they exited the gym and headed back towards their apartment. They walked the entire way, hand in hand but in silence. Each of them was totally lost in their own thoughts.

As they entered the apartment, Mara turned to Luke. “I’m going to take a quick shower. Would you check to see if we have any messages?”

“Sure,” Luke replied. He could tell by her tone of voice that she needed some time to herself. He headed to the study as she entered their bedroom. He found they had quite a few messages. Han, Mirax, Karrde, Iella and Kam had all called. Listening to the messages, only the one from the Academy seemed pressing. He keyed in the code and waited for the holonet to secure a connection with Yavin. He smiled warmly as the display lit up.

“Good morning, Master,” Tionne said as Luke’s face filled her display screen. “How are you?”

“Just fine, Tionne and how are you feeling?” Luke said with a slight note of concern.

“A little queasy at times but otherwise I am doing well,” Tionne answered. “Are you returning Kam’s call, Master?”

“Yes, do you know what he wanted? Is there some type of problem?” Luke asked.

“Not a problem, just a question,” Tionne replied. “I’ll get him for you and he can explain.” She picked up a comlink and asked Kam to come to the communications center. As they waited for Kam, he asked more about how she was feeling and inquired on things at the academy.

Within a few moments, Kam appeared at the holonet terminal. “Sorry to bother you so soon, Master but I need your input on a situation that has arisen.”

“It’s okay, Kam. What is the issue?” Luke asked.

“You received a call earlier today from the Corellian Ambassador,” Kam said. We told him that you were unavailable at present but we could relay his information to you. Anyway, the bottom line is that they have a thirteen-year-old girl who was brought to the embassy from one of the remote areas of the planet by her father. The parents believe that the girl is force sensitive and from the information we received I would have to agree that is very likely. They would like someone to come and evaluate her,” Kam explained.

“Although it is unusual for us to go to the student, I suppose we could send someone if the Ambassador feels we need to,” Luke said. “Who were you planning on sending?”

“That is the issue, Master,” Kam answered. “Normally I would go but Tionne and I were planning a short trip before we start training Reyenna. Kyp left earlier today and Streen and Kirana Ti need to stay here.”

As he listened to Kam, Luke realized that this situation could be just what he and Mara needed. “I may be able to go myself. Just let me talk to Mara,” he said. Why don’t you download all the information on this girl to me. I will get back to you later,” Luke ended.

“Okay Master, I will talk to you soon,” Kam said as he ended the connection.

Luke backed away from the holonet terminal with a grin spreading across his face. Yes, this could work out just fine. He might even be able to use the trip as part of his thank you to Wedge.

**************

Mara walked into their bedroom deep in thought. The past twenty-four hours had been an emotional whirlwind for her. Her emotions had ranged from surprise, to joy, to anger, to regret until she settled into her current precarious state. Their sparring match had relieved some of her physical tension but she was still suffocating in the aftermath of her emotional upheaval. All the negative feelings that had flowed through her had put her out of sync with the Force. As she undressed, she hoped the shower would help to bring her mind, heart and body back into balance.

Mara entered the shower and stood with the hot water cascading over her body. She slowed her breathing and tried to clear her mind. Luke constantly told her that she needed to be calm and at peace to fully interact with the Force and those words echoed in her mind. She had to purge this emotional turmoil from her being. She thought back to their plans to have a child. She knew that a baby, especially a force sensitive one, would readily feel her emotions. She did not want to take a chance on passing on any negative feelings.

Mara focused again on Luke’s calming techniques and worked to rid herself of this negativity. She continued this for quite some time until she finally felt peace settling into her heart. She wondered how long she had been standing under the shower. Looking at the wrinkles that had developed on her fingertips, she knew it had been quite some time. She washed quickly and left the shower, entering their bedroom as she was toweling dry. Catching a glimpse of herself in the mirror, she realized how much today’s events had drained her. It was over now and she needed to put it behind her.

As she began dressing, Mara felt Luke approaching the room. She turned after fastening her pants to see him standing in the doorway.

“Hello, my love,” Luke said smiling. “Are you feeling better?”

“Much better thanks,” Mara replied. “Anything urgent in the messages?”

“Mirax and Karrde both want you to call them but it did not seem too pressing,” Luke said. He looked at her as if trying to decide what to say.

Noticing his hesitation, Mara said sarcastically. “Spit it out Skywalker. Who else called?”

“Kam called,” Luke answered cautiously. “How would you feel about taking a little trip?”

Mara’s eyes widened as she tried to sense the feelings behind Luke’s words. “A trip to where and for what?” she asked. He walked to stand beside and took her hand once she had finished buttoning her shirt.

“There is a young girl on Corellia that the Ambassador would like to have evaluated,” Luke said. “They believe she is force sensitive. I thought we could go to Corellia and conduct the evaluation. This would also give you a chance to take your new toy out for a spin,” he teased. He took a deep breath before he continued. “I thought we could invite Wedge and Iella to join us. He never takes any time off and this could be a partial thank you for everything he did to help me with the ship.”

Mara pondered his idea. They had not had any time away together since their honeymoon, so that would be really nice. Also, they had never traveled with anyone else for pleasure. Sharing things could be fun and it would be great doing it with Iella and Wedge. She knew that they had not had any private time away from the girls. This could definitely be a way of thanking them. Iella had helped her immensely to come to terms with things this morning.

“I think that is a very good idea,” Mara replied. “We could all relax, they could show us the sites and it would give them some time away from the kids.” Thinking of the girls made her smile. “We will have to arrange for someone to take care of Syal and Myri. And I am anxious to take the ‘Saber’ out for her first flight,” she laughed.

“Do you think Mirax and Corran would take the girls for a few days?” Luke asked.

“Let me return her call and see what I can arrange,” Mara replied.

“I am going to shower,” Luke said. He undressed and walked to the refresher as Mara left the room.

*************

Mara walked into the study to call Mirax. When her call was answered, she was greeted by a young voice.

“Horn residence,” Valin said politely.

“Hello, Valin,” Mara said. “Is you mom at home?”

“Hello, Mara,” Valin answered. “Mom’s home, would you like to talk to her?”

“Yes, please,” Mara said. She heard Valin shout for his mother across the room. In a moment she heard Mirax ask Valin what he wanted and heard him reply that she was on the holonet.

In a few seconds, Mirax appeared on her terminal screen. “Hi, Mara. How are you?”

“I am fine, thanks,” Mara replied.

Before she could say anything else, Mirax spoke again. “Are you sure? Corran told me about the ship but then I talked to Iella a little while ago.”

“I really overreacted to Luke keeping it a secret,” Mara said softly. “It is a beautiful ship and a wonderful gift. I need to look more at the reasons for the action and not just the action, I guess.”

“If you decide you want to talk about it,” Mirax said with concern.

“We will get through this but thanks,” Mara said. “But I do need a favor. How would you feel about watching Syal and Myri for a few days?” She told her about their tentative trip to Corellia to evaluate the girl and their desire to bring Iella and Wedge along with them as a gift. She watched Mirax carefully as she spoke to gauge her feelings about the request.

Mirax thought about Mara’s request. It would be nice to do something for both couples but she and Corran were planning a trip with Valin to visit her father. Well, he considered Wedge and Iella’s children as much his grandkids as he did Valin so maybe they could all go to visit him. “We were planning a short trip to see Booster but I don’t see a problem with all of us going, she said. “The last time he saw Syal and Myri was at your wedding, so I am sure he would love to see them again. Just let me check with Corran,” she added.

************

Luke entered the refresher and turned on the shower. As he stepped under the stream of hot water, he was surprised to feel how tense his body was. Although he had been upset by Mara’s reaction to his keeping the ship secret, he thought he had done well to stay relatively calm during the entire ordeal. But his body was telling him otherwise. He increased the force of the water and began taking deep, calming breaths as he stood under it. Within a few moments, he had purged the remaining tension from his body. He washed quickly and was soon back in their bedroom, toweling off. He pulled on a pair of boxers and headed back to the common room. Catching a glimpse of Mara still at the holonet terminal in the study, he flopped into his favorite chair and closed his eyes.

************

Mara and Mirax continued chatting for a few more minutes. After seeing how much Iella has already told her, she confided in Mirax that she had discontinued using the repress meds. She told her about her dreams, knowing that Mirax would probably understand the Jedi vision interpretation more than most. Mirax reminded her to trust in the Force and everything would work out as it should. Mirax told her she would talk to Corran and Booster and get back to her in the morning.

Mara walked into the common room after ending her call to Mirax and found Luke sleeping lightly in his chair. She smiled at the sight of him, but also felt pain tugging at her heart from everything she had put him through earlier. At times like this, she felt like she really did not deserve him. She wavered between letting him sleep for a while and waking him so that she could work to purge the painful memories from earlier. At that thought, her mind shifted back to something she had picked up on Swiven and she began to smile. She walked back into their bedroom, planning as she went. Picking up the bag she had tossed in the corner the evening before, she rummaged through and pulled out the item she sought. Grasping it, she walked to the refresher and pulled two large bath sheets from the cupboard. Tossing them over her arm, she grabbed a bowl and filled it with warm water, picked up another smaller towel and moved back into the common room.

Mara moved with catlike stealth, as she set up the items on the floor by Luke’s chair. She spread the two bath sheets, one on top of the other, lengthwise across the floor. She placed the bottle she had taken from her bag in the bowl of warm water by the right hand corner of the sheets. She tossed the smaller towel by the bowl and moved to kneel between Luke’s feet. Placing her hands on the top of his thighs, she slowly slid them up his body. Within seconds, he was stirring from her touch and languidly opened his eyes to meet her gaze.

“Hi there,” Luke said softly. “Did you have a nice chat with Mirax?”

“It was fine,” Mara answered as she slid her body closer to his. “I will tell you about it later. Right now, I have other plans for you,” she added seductively. She rose and pulled him into a standing position. He started to ask her something but she silenced him with a finger to his lips. “You are not allowed to talk, Skywalker. Just follow instructions and feel.” He looked at her questioningly, but complied with her wishes as she pushed him to his knees on the towels. She pushed on his shoulders, forcing him to lay face down across them. She grabbed a pillow from the sofa and tucked it under his head.

As he stretched out fully across the towels, Luke wondered what Mara was planning. Although he was only clad in his boxers, she was still dressed in her shirt and pants. He would find out soon enough, so he might as well just lay back and reap the full benefit of her plan.

Mara moved to straddled Luke’s prone body and stopped suddenly. Deciding that she wanted to be able to feel his skin against hers, she quickly divested herself of her pants. Leaving only her underwear covering her lower body, she moved again to straddle him. Positioning her feet at each side of his hips, she lowered herself to her knees. She adjusted her position so that her weight was balanced between her knees and sitting in the indentation of his lower back. She kissed him lightly across the nape of his neck as she reached for the bottle by his head. She opened the bottle and poured a small amount of the liquid from it into her palm. She rubbed her hands together, coating her palms and fingers thoroughly with the fragrant liquid. Pouring another measure into her palm, she took a deep breath and smiled as the musky scent invaded her senses.

Luke moaned softly as Mara’s buttocks came into contact with his back. Her shirt brushed lightly against him as she leaned forward and kissed his neck. He could feel her reaching for something but was unable to see, as his face was turned the opposite direction. Her body was telegraphing small movements as he heard the sound of a top being popped open. A unique scent mingled with Mara’s and he focused to try to place it. Suddenly, her slick hands were at the back of his neck, rubbing the contents of her palms smoothly into his skin.

Mara rubbed the oil gently into the back of Luke’s neck. Once she had deposited it there, she began kneading the muscles of his neck and shoulders. She moved her fingers in small circular motions, applying pressure to each tightened area. She worked very slowly, stopping when necessary to pour additional oil into her palm. She moved outward from his shoulders, thoroughly massaging one arm and then the other. Pouring out more oil, she moved back to his shoulders and began a path down his back, concentrating on one half at a time.

Luke felt like his body had dissolved into a pool of jelly due to Mara’s touches. He lay there totally engulfed in the sensations that she was creating. Her constant shift between firm pressure and featherlight touches was overwhelming. Although she had not touched him anywhere other than his back and arms, other parts of his body were reacting to her. The sensations were causing a fire to spread into his loins and he was becoming more aroused as each moment passed.

Mara lifted herself from Luke’s back and moved to kneel at his feet. Pouring more oil into her palm, she began at his foot and slowly made her way up his calf and thigh. His groin twitched as she reached the junction of his leg and buttock but she quickly shifted her attention to his other leg. Once she again reached that junction, she slid her body forward and reached for the waistband of his boxers. She pulled them down slightly, so that his hips and buttocks were exposed and moved to massage those areas. She felt and heard him groan as she ran her hands along the cleft between his cheeks. He moaned again as she brought her hands back to the band of his boxers and pulled them back into place.

Luke didn’t know how much more of the torturous pleasure he would be able to stand. The sensations were exquisite and he knew that Mara was doing this, partially to relay physically the emotions she found it so difficult to convey. But his control was waning and he wanted nothing more than to end this now, and make passionate love to his wife. He felt her lift herself from his body and kneel at his side. As he turned to face her, the look of intense love that was radiating from her brilliant green eyes was overwhelming. He reached up to take her face between his hands and started to speak. “Mara….”

She silenced him with a light kiss and placed a finger on his lips as she separated from him. “I told you, no talking. Now, roll onto your back so I can finish what I started.” She pushed him over on his back and moved so that she was resting on his abdomen. She poured more oil into her palm and began massaging the muscles of his neck and chest. She repeated her motions in the same order she had on his back. She moved from his neck and shoulders, to his arms, his chest and his legs. As she moved from place to place, she ignored the one place that ached for her attention. She did not allow even a light tough anywhere between his waist and where his thighs joined his hips. As she slid back up his body, she could feel him trying to shift to create contact there. She chuckled and kissed him lightly. “Patience, my love.”

As Mara moved back to rest against his abdomen, Luke could feel the slight wetness that had developed in the lace touching his body. That feeling, coupled with the friction caused by her thighs against his hips, was bombarding his dissolving control. He took all his resolve not to thrust upward as her hands grasped the band of his boxers. Hopefully, she wasn’t going to continue this torture.

Mara smiled as she felt his thought and winked. “I am not finished with you yet, Farmboy.” She slid the boxers from his body and moved to sit across his thighs. Looking down at his rampant erection, she knew that it would only be a matter of moments before he could no longer keep control. She poured more oil into her hand and massaged along his hips and abdomen. She slid her hand between his thighs and cupped the sack that rested there, squeezing gently before stroking each side with her fingertips. Finally she slid her hand upward and grasped the base of his shaft. Luke released a guttural groan and thrust into the pressure. She slid further down his body and brought her lips to his weeping tip. She kissed it, swirling her tongue into the slit and licking the salty fluid that escaped from it. He moaned again as she enclosed him in the wonderful wetness of her mouth. She moved her lips up and down along his length, as her tongue slid along the ridge. When she paused at the tip and nipped lightly under the ridge, he froze, holding his breath.

Luke had to draw on every bit of his control to keep from exploding into her mouth. Wrapping his hands into Mara’s hair, he pulled her mouth from him. She had brought him so close to the edge, that he was not even able to form a coherent word. “Plea…..” He gave up trying to speak and pulled her up his body. Once she was again sitting against his abdomen, he brought his hands to the lace at her hips. Still unable to speak, his passion-darkened eyes bore into hers.

Luke’s reactions during the last few minutes had affected Mara deeply. Although he had not even touched her, she could feel the heat radiating from inside her. Her wetness had soaked through the piece of lace that separated their flesh. Her level of desire was almost equal to his. She lifted herself from him and stripped off her clothing. Within seconds, she was again seated against his abdomen. She leaned forward and kissed him passionately, thrusting her tongue into his mouth to mimic their joining. Pulling back, she slid further down his hips and settled herself over his throbbing shaft. She lowered herself onto him and a groan exploded from his throat. Searing contact was created as his manhood filled every space within her to the fullest.

Luke decided he had relinquished control to Mara for long enough. He placed one hand on her hip to still her and pulled her lips to his. He kissed her deeply and moved his hands to cup her breasts. He squeezed and fondled them before pressing a thumb against each hardened nipple. He was exhilarated to hear her moan as he touched her.

Mara was enjoying Luke’s touch but wasn’t about to let him take over. She pushed his hands down and placed hers firmly on his chest. She began moving above him, knowing it would not take much to bring him to completion. She tightened her muscles around him on each downward thrust, and within moments, he cried out as she felt him explode within her. Although she had not achieved release, she could feel the pleasure that Luke was experiencing across their bond. The intensity of his orgasm pulsed over her and pushed her closer to the top.

As Luke came back to reality, he realized that Mara was still hovering just below the threshold of orgasm. He rolled her off him, onto the towels, and knelt at her hip. He moved his left hand to her paradise, sliding two fingers within her. Supporting his weight on his right arm, he leaned forward and enclosed her nipple with his lips. As he continued to split his attention between these two pleasure points, her breathing became raspy and she ached up against him.

The feeling of Luke’s fingers moving inside her, enveloped by their combined wetness, was exquisite. Part of her was upset at his attention, as she had wanted this to only be about his pleasure. But the sensation he was creating overwhelmed her, so she lay back and allowed him to pull her along. Within seconds, the sensations engulfed her and she cried out loudly as she fell over the edge.

After her release, Luke lay down beside her and drew Mara into his arms. He placed tiny kisses atop her head as she lay against him. She felt so wonderful in his arms and he could easily have fallen asleep lying there. He felt her shiver as the cold air encircled her nude body and decided that they would have to either relocate or redress. Opting for the first choice he stood, pulling her into his arms, and led her to their bed. He laid her back on the bed and pulled the covers over her body. “Are you ready to go to sleep, my love?” he whispered.

“Only if you will join me,” Mara replied.

Looking down at Mara, Luke could still see the residual effects of the day’s events and decided that sleep would be the best thing for her. He slid onto the bed beside her and drew her into his embrace. She snuggled back against him, but he could tell by her breathing that sleep was already overtaking her. *I love you,* he sent as he closed his eyes. He focused on the rhythm of her breathing and within a few minutes had drifted off to sleep as well.

As Mara began to awaken, she was surprised to feel Luke’s body still nestled against hers. The sun was just beginning to filter into the room, so she knew it was earlier than she normally woke. Looking at the chrono, she also saw that it was later than Luke usually slept. She turned to face him and ran her hand gently alongside his face. “Good morning, love,” she said softly. As his eyes drifted open, she bent down and kissed him. “Did you sleep well?”

Luke kissed her back before he replied. “Very well, how about you?” Noticing the chrono, he looked at her rather puzzled. “A little early for you, isn’t it?”

“It was rather early when we went to sleep last night,” Mara laughed. “We never even had dinner.”

Luke pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately. “You know that as long as I get dessert, dinner is optional.” He held her against him, nestling his face into her neck. They lay in the position for quite some time before the rumblings in his stomach caused him to laugh. “Maybe we should think about getting breakfast. Or maybe….” He stopped as he nibbled on the soft flesh of her neck.

Mara laughed as she pushed him away from her. “What would people think if the Master started wasting away?” She kneaded the muscles in his upper arms with her fingertips. “Let’s get up, Skywalker.” She rolled off the bed, grabbed a sleeping shift and pulled it over her body. She tossed him a pair of boxers as she headed for the refresher. She exited the refresher to find him standing by the door. She ran her hand along his chest and laughed as he drew in a quick breath. She allowed her hand to brush over the cloth of his boxers before she brought it to his face. Kissing him lightly, she whispered. “Nice to know I haven’t lost my touch. I’ll go get us some breakfast.”

Luke sighed heavily as she walked away. “It isn’t very nice to tease me like that.” As he entered the refresher, he heard laughingly in his mind. * I never said I was nice. *

Luke came out of the refresher and joined his wife in the kitchen. They had breakfast and discussed the things they needed to do. Luke wanted to see Admiral Ackbar to arrange some leave time for Wedge along with doing a few other errands. Mara wanted to see what Mirax had decided about keeping the girls and get her suggestions on accommodations and things to do while they were on Corellia.

Mara showered and dressed as Luke was cleaning up from breakfast. He came back into their bedroom just as she was starting to dress. His eyes roamed her body longingly. He exhaled and focused on centering himself. Mara began to laugh. “Skywalker, you are insatiable.”

“Must be the ten years of denial you put me through,” Luke teased. He moved to wrap his arms around her waist. “So when would you like to leave?” Seeing her looking at him questioningly, he added. “For Corellia, I mean.”

“It will depend on what Mirax and Corran decide, but I was hoping we could leave the day after tomorrow. We should be able to make more definite plans once I talk to Mirax later this morning.”

After Luke showered and dressed, he found Mara seated at the computer terminal in the study. Standing behind her, he could see she was flipping through screens of different places in and around the Corellian capital of Coronet. “I am going to see Ackbar. I will take my comlink in case anyone needs me. Contact me once you hear from Mirax,” he said. He kissed her lightly on the back of the neck before he walked away.

Mara smiled as she watched Luke walk from the room, then refocused her attention to the computer screen. She noted any places of interest into a datapad. The four of them could look at it later to decide exactly what they wanted to do. As she entered in information on two very exclusive restaurants, she thought back to yesterday’s lunch. This would be the perfect opportunity to get the guys to take them to one and she and Iella would definitely take advantage of it.

Mara became aware of an incoming call signal from the holonet terminal and walked over to it. Mirax’s face filled the screen as she secured the connection. “Good morning, Mara. How are you?”

“Fine, and you?” Mara replied. She looked intently at Mirax’s image trying to figure out what she had decided.

“Great. I talked to Corran and he is fine with us taking the girls for a few days. I called Booster to tell him we would all be coming. He was thrilled,” Mirax said.

“Thank you so much for doing this, Mirax,” Mara said sincerely. “Now I am going to owe you a favor.”

“I’ll think of something,” Mirax chuckled.

Mara asked Mirax about places to stay and things to do while they were there. They talked about when they wanted to leave and how they would tell Iella and Wedge about the trip. Mirax was concerned how Iella and Wedge would react to the idea of leaving the girls with them and going away. They had talked for quite a while, when Mara came up with an idea. “Why don’t you guys plan on coming over for dinner tonight. Bring Valin too and I will call Iella and invite all of them. The kids can play together and we can tell them about the plans for the trip.”

“Sounds good. I will talk to Corran about when he wants to leave,” Mirax replied.

“Let’s plan for around 1800. That way dinner will be early enough for the kids,” Mara said. “See you tonight.” As she ended the connection, she smiled. Things were working out. The trip would be fun for all of them and it would be wonderful to be able to something nice for Iella and Wedge.

She took a few minutes to return Karrde’s call from yesterday. They talked for a few minutes then he asked her opinion on a few business situations. She told him about Luke’s gift to her and their planned trip. He admitted that he had heard rumors that Skywalker was having a ship built but had not mentioned it as she had seemed totally unaware of the situation. She teased him about keeping secrets like Luke but then laughed it off. Mara was glad that she was no longer emotionally on edge as Karrde would have sensed it and probably felt obliged to punish Luke for upsetting her. He gave her a few more ideas of things to do on their trip. She ended the call by telling him she would call before they left.

Mara went back to the computer and had looked through quite a bit more information when she heard Luke enter the apartment. When she looked up at the chrono, she was surprised to see that it was now 1230.

“Isn’t this where you were when I left?” Luke asked as he entered the study. “Have you heard from Mirax?”

“Yes, they will take the girls,” Mara said. She told him about her conversation with Mirax and her idea to have them all for dinner. “How did things go with Ackbar?”

“It’s all set. All I have to do is tell him when we are leaving and how long we will be gone,” Luke said. “He thinks it’s great that Wedge will finally be taking some personal time off.”

“Good. Let me call Iella and ask her about dinner,” Mara said. She got up from the computer and went to the holonet terminal. Luke began scrolling through the information on her datapad as she secured the connection.

Syal’s face appeared on the screen as the call was answered. “Antilles’ residence,” she said politely.

“Hello Syal,” Mara said warmly.

“Hi Mara,” Syal replied. “Do you want to talk to mom?”

“Please,” Mara answered.

Within a few moments, Iella appeared at the terminal. “Hi Mara. How are you doing today?” She looked at Mara intently as she waited for her to respond.

“Much better thanks,” Mara said. “Would you, Wedge and the girls like to come over for dinner tonight? Mirax, Corran and Valin will be coming also.”

“We would love to join you all for dinner,” Iella replied. “I am also glad that you are feeling better. What time?”

“Is around 1800 okay?” Mara asked.

“That should be fine,” Iella answered. “I’ll check with Wedge. If there is a problem, I will call back. Otherwise, we will see you at 1800.”

Mara walked over to Luke after she ended the call and wrapped her arms around him from behind. “You are going to help me get this dinner ready, aren’t you?” She had never taken much of an interest in learning to cook and as a result her skills were meager at best. Luke enjoyed cooking and seemed to have a natural aptitude for it.

“How much is it worth to you?” Luke teased. He turned to face her, kissed her lightly and pulled her against him.

“Your price is probably above my range but maybe we can negotiate a deal,” Mara whispered seductively in his ear.

“A very wise woman once told me never to negotiate,” Luke laughed. “I am sure I can come up with a payment that is acceptable to you.” He kissed her passionately again and rubbed suggestively against her. As he released her, he said. “Let’s figure out what we are going to serve for dinner.”

“Maybe a caterer would be more affordable,” Mara teased. She took him by the hand and they walked to the kitchen. They looked through Luke’s collection of recipes and decided on a menu. They looked at the ingredients they would need and made a list of what they would need to purchase.

They took a quick trip to the store to pick up the items they needed. They also grabbed a couple of holovids for the kids to watch if they got bored. When they got back to the apartment, Luke unpacked and organized the items. They spent the remainder of the afternoon, working together to prepare dinner. Mara helped as much as possible with the food preparation. When Luke did not have anything for her to do, she arranged the dining room, setting the table, arranging flowers and the like. She set up the bar making sure that there was plenty of Corellian whiskey and ale, Wedge's and Corran's drinks of choice.

She walked back into the kitchen and laughed. Luke might be a good cook but he was also a messy one. There was flour on his face, his shirt, something unrecognizable smeared on his sleeve and dishes everywhere. “What would your students think if they saw you now?” she said as she walked to the counter. “Give me a clue on which things you have finished with and I will try to get some of them out of the way.”

As Luke pointed to the counter area to his left, Mara could see that there was actually a system to this mess. He had started working on the counter from the left and had spread out to the right as he worked. As she walked to that end, she said. “I will start here and work behind you.” She winked at him impishly as she added, “This should significantly lower our negotiated price, Farmboy”

“I don’t think so,” Luke chuckled. “The price we negotiated was only for me to make dinner, not to clean up.” He slid further along the counter and move to prepare the next menu item.

Mara worked behind him, cleaning up and putting away items as Luke completed the last dish. Once the last item was cooking, he began helping her. Within a few minutes, the kitchen was returned to it previous clean and uncluttered state. When they had finished, Mara wiped a flour smudge from Luke’s cheek and kissed him lightly. “The only thing that still needs to be cleaned up is you, Skywalker.”

Luke pulled her into his arms as he replied. “I will definitely need your assistance in that area.”

Mara pointed to the chrono and shook her head. “Remember, we do have guests coming.” A grin encompassed her face and she chuckled.

Mara’s choice of words and playful expression brought Luke back to their conversation in the ship’s cabin yesterday morning. He released her from his embrace and said softly, “I need to talk to you about something.” He sat on a stool by the counter and pulled her into his lap. “Do you remember yesterday, when I told you I had something else I wanted to tell you?” Her expression became more serious as she nodded. “I promised you that I would be totally open with you. When I was meditating, I had two visions. We have already shared the joy and wonder of my first vision.” He took her hands in his and locked his intense blue eyes with her apprehensive emerald ones before he continued. “The second vision was vague and very fleeting. At first, I wasn’t going to tell you about it at all so that you wouldn’t worry.”

Mara brought her hand to Luke’s face and ran her fingertips along his cheek. “Just tell me what you saw,” she said softly.

Luke took a deep breath and brought his free hand to Mara’s face. “It started with hearing you scream in my mind and then losing all sense of your presence within the Force. I could no longer feel you. It was as if a wall had gone up between our minds. I tried to hold onto the vision to get a fix on my surroundings but couldn’t. I know is that I was in my X-wing but I have no idea where I was.” He continued to look intently at her as she absorbed his words.

“You don’t know where you were but did you get any sense of a time?” she asked. As she waited for him to answer, she was already compartmentalizing the information to review it later.

“No, it was too brief to get anything more.” Luke replied. “I don’t want to ignore this information but I don’t want to let it affect our decisions either.”

“Remember that knowledge is power, Luke.” Mara said. She smiled brightly at him and kissed his cheek. “Didn’t the little green troll tell you that the future is always in motion?”

Luke rolled his eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. “Mara, it isn’t nice to talk about Master Yoda like that.” He pulled her against him and leaned his forehead against hers. “We will deal with whatever is in store for us, together. Nothing will ever separate us.” The conviction in his voice increased as he pushed aside his fear and opened himself more fully to the Force.

Mara brought her lips to Luke’s and kissed him deeply before sliding off his lap. She looked down at her clothes to see that specks of flour now dotted her shirt and pants. “Looks like we will both need to change. Let’s get moving. We only have a few minutes until they get here.” She took him by the hand and led him to their bedroom.

Luke was undressed and in the shower in a matter of minutes. Mara had changed into a clean shirt and pants, cleaned up and replaited her hair by the time he finished. He was pulling on his boxers when they heard the door chime. “Finish getting dressed and I’ll greet our guests,” she said. She walked from their room, closing the door behind her, without waiting for an answer.

Mara opened the front door to find the Antilles family standing there. “Hello, everyone. Come in, ” she said warmly. They entered the apartment and Mara was about to close the door when she heard footsteps coming towards them. She turned to see Valin Horn running down the hallway. She stood in the doorway until Corran and Mirax caught up with their son and ushered them all inside.

Luke was just entering the common room as Mara closed the door. Wedge lowered Myri from his arms in order to exchange greetings with his friends. Mara chuckled as Myri toddled directly to Luke and extended her arms out to him. She could hear the child’s small voice repeating, ‘up, up Luke’ as she looked at him with big brown eyes so much like her father’s. Luke reached down and picked her up, snuggling her into the crook of his arm. She could hear him talking to her in a soft voice, calling her his little princess. The sight of Myri in Luke’s arms brought back Mara’s dream. She couldn’t wait until Luke was holding their child in his arms. Hopefully it would happen soon.

The children had each come in with a little duffel bag filled with toys and playthings. Syal and Valin were talking about the things they brought with them. Luke handed Wedge a blanket to spread on the floor in the study so that the kids could play. He then set Myri down on the corner of it and dumped her toys out around her.

As the guys got the children settled in the study, Mara walked to the bar area with Mirax and Iella. She poured drinks for everyone and they brought them back into the common room. They placed the guys' glasses on the low table by the sofa, sat down and fell into comfortable conversation.

Wedge instructed Syal to keep an eye on her sister, silencing the 'but dad' that played on her lips with just a glance. Once they were settled, Luke, Wedge and Corran joined their wives in the common room. Seeing the three glasses on the table, Corran laughed. "These must be for us." He handed one glass to Wedge, one to Luke and took the last one for himself. "So Master, it looks like you escaped from your ordeal unscathed. Does that mean Mara is mellowing?" he chuckled.

Mirax rolled her eyes at her husband and only needed two words to reinforce her look. "Behave, Horn."

Corran laughed and raised his glass to his friends. "To our beautiful wives and their full time job of keeping us in line." They brought their glasses to their lips and quickly drained them of the deep amber liquid.

As Wedge and Corran sat down, Luke retrieved the bottle of Corellian whiskey and refilled their glasses. Luke then caught his wife's eye as she was talking to her friends and she got up to stand beside him. "Wedge and Iella, Mara and I have something we would like to ask you." He looked intently at Wedge as he spoke. "The time and effort that you spent helping me to procure the 'Jade Saber' was invaluable. There was no way I could have accomplished it on my own. As a small token of my appreciation, we would like you and Iella to join us on the 'Saber's' maiden voyage." Luke was happy to see a smile spread across Wedge's face. He was looking forward to his reaction once they to him where they were planning to go. He looked at Iella and then back to Wedge before he asked, "so, are you interested in joining us?"

Wedge shifted his gaze to look intently at his wife. He could see that Iella was intrigued by the idea but also had a lot of questions. He looked back at Luke. "It sound really tempting but we would have to make a lot of arrangements…."

Luke interrupted Wedge before he could finish. "Don't worry about the arrangements. Mara and I have taken care of everything." Luke looked over at Iella and smiled. "So, do you want to come or not?"

"We would love to but….." Wedge said.

This time, Mara stopped him. "It is a yes or no answer, Antilles," she said trying to suppress her laughter.

Wedge looked pleadingly at his wife for assistance. Iella then turned to Mara. "As much as I would like to just say yes, I need some practical information before we can. Where are we going?"

"Corellia," Mara replied. "Next question?"

"Who would watch the girls?" Iella asked.

Mirax touched Iella's arm to get her attention. "Corran and I will take them with us on a little trip to visit Booster while you are gone."

Mara could see the smile beginning to form on Iella’s face as she realized that they actually might be able to do this.

Wedge smiled at his wife as he told Luke. “I would need time to see if I can arrange some personal leave.”

Luke started to laugh. “Already taken care of, Wedge. I just need to let Admiral Ackbar know when you are leaving and when you will be back.”

It was Wedge’s turn to laugh. “Is there anything you haven’t taken care of?”

“Not really,” Mara replied. “All you need to do is pack and say you will come.”

Iella looked at Wedge and they both turned to look at the girls playing in the study. Mirax tried to alleviate Iella’s concern. “I know you have never left them before for more than an evening. Don’t worry, we will take good care of them, she said reassuringly. “Wouldn’t it be nice to have some time for just the two of you?”

“Yes, it would,” Iella said in a pensive tone. “But it will also be strange to be away from them.”

“So does that mean you have decided to come?” Mara asked. She looked at Iella with a hopeful expression as she waited for her answer.

Iella looked at Wedge to gauge his feelings before turning back to Mara. “Can we sleep on it and let you know in the morning?”

"Sure," Mara replied, as she looked over at Luke.

“Anyone ready for dinner?” Luke asked as a means to change the topic. They needed to give Wedge and Iella a chance to think about their offer.

“Definitely,” Wedge and Corran replied together.

Luke walked into the kitchen and started putting the various items into serving dishes. He was bringing the first ones to the tables as the others entered the dining room.

Mirax was surprised to see that Luke was the one getting things ready. “How do you get him to do that?” she asked rather perplexed.

“Luke was the one who made dinner.” Mara laughed as she added, “You know that cooking is not one of my talents. It is definitely to everyone’s advantage that Luke did the cooking.”

Corran tapped Luke on the shoulder and said. “I hope you will be well compensated for these cooking duties, Master.”

As slight blush rose to Luke’s cheeks as he turned to Mara and winked.

“Maybe I will consider lessening his outstanding punishment for the events of yesterday,” Mara joked as she walked over to help him.

Iella called the children in for dinner and got them settled at the table. The three couples had become very close since Luke and Mara’s wedding. Within minutes, everyone was seated and passing around serving dishes. Dinner was a pleasant experience for everyone. The adults enjoyed each others company but made sure to include the children in the conversation to keep them from getting restless.

By the time they had finished dinner, the children had been sitting quietly long enough. Myri was climbing from Iella’s lap to Wedge’s and back again. Valin and Syal had become fidgety and were asking to be excused to return to their play.

Mara got up from the table and picked up a few empty plates. “Why don’t you get the kids resettled and head into the common room. I’ll pick up and bring dessert in there.”

Iella looked at Mirax as she stood up. “Mirax and I will help you. Turning to Wedge, she added. “Can you get the girls situated?” Wedge took Myri from his wife’s arms and walked back to where her toys were set up in the study. Once she was playing happily, he rejoined Luke and Corran in the other room.

Corran turned to him as he sat down. “So what do you think of Luke’s vacation plans, Wedge? Sounds like it could be an interesting trip.” Before Wedge could answer, Corran looked at Luke and winked. “If you guys decide not to go, maybe we could leave Valin with you and Mirax and I could take your place.”

“I plan on doing everything in my power to convince Iella that we should go,” Wedge replied. “She is just nervous about leaving the girls. Once she has time to think about it more, she will realize that they will be fine.” Luke poured them each another drink and they continued to talk, about the trip, Corellia and the like.

The conversation in the kitchen was taking on a similar tone. “Wouldn’t it be nice to have some private time with Wedge?” Mirax asked. “When was the last time you and Wedge had more than an evening without the children?”

“Before Myri was born,” Iella replied. “Yes, it would be nice but it will be hard to leave the girls.”

“No buts,” Mirax said. “You need to do this for yourself.”

Mara smiled as she listened to the conversation. “So is this what I am setting myself up for? No time to ourselves, always worried about them. Maybe I should reconsider while I have the chance.”

Both Iella and Mirax laughed before Iella answered her. “Babies are wonderful, Mara. Syal and Myri have brought such joy into our lives. “Besides, you should be all set,” she added. “Jedi don’t need much sleep, right.” The women continued to talk as the cleared the dishes. Once done, they set up a dessert tray and brought it and some caf into the other room.

Looking down at the luscious chocolate confection that Mara placed on the table, Corran began to chuckle. “Is this another Jedi skill like telekinesis that bypassed the Halycron line, Master?”

“Let’s just say the Master is multi-talented,” Mara said impishly as she smiled at Luke. The blush that spread across his cheeks caused his friends to laugh.

Luke tried to glare at his wife and friends but the deep blush he wore only succeeded in making them laugh harder. “This is the last time I try to do something nice for you guys,” he said. A pout spread over his face as he walked to the door of the study and added, “I’ll just go where I am appreciated.” The group continued to laugh as Luke picked up Myri and began talking to her softly. “Would you like some dessert, sweetheart?”

Myri wrapped her arms around Luke’s neck. “Me loves sert, “ she giggled. He brought her into the common room, picked up a plate and sat down with her in his lap. Mara came up behind him but he ignored her. "Luke mad at Mara?” Myri asked between bites.

Luke looked at Myri in amazement. He had forgotten how sensitive little ones were. “No Myri, we're just playing,” he said softly. He reached over to take Mara’s hand to reinforce his words.

Valin and Syal joined the group and they all enjoyed some of Luke’s chocolate creation. Once they had finished, Iella looked over to see Myri rubbing her eyes with her closed fists. “It is way past someone’s bedtime,” she said as she took Myri from Luke’ lap. Myri snuggled into her arms and laid her head on Iella’s shoulder. “We need to get going, Wedge.”

Corran and Wedge took Valin and Syal back into the study to collect their toys. Within a few minutes, they returned to the common room, carrying their bags. “I will call you in the morning once we have had a little more time to think about this, Luke,” he said.

“I hope you seriously consider it, Wedge,” Luke replied. “It will be a great trip.”

Luke and Mara walked their guests to the door and everyone said their goodnights. After closing the door, he took her hand and led her to the sofa. He sat back and pulled her to lean against him. “Tonight was fun. I hope Wedge and Iella decide to come with us.”

“So do I,” Mara said as she snuggled into Luke’s chest. He brought his arm around her and they sat like that for quite a while. After a few minutes, he began lightly rubbing his hand over her abdomen. This was a new gesture for Luke and Mara smiled as she placed her hand over his. “Practicing?” she laughed as she turned to kiss his chest.

Luke was surprise when he realized what he had been doing. “Wishful thinking, I guess.”

They sat for a little while longer before Mara pulled from his embrace. “Let’s pick up the rest of this stuff and head to bed, Skywalker. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.”

They cleaned up the remaining dishes and headed for their bedroom. Within minutes they had changed and were snuggled in bed in each other’s embrace. Mara laid her head against his chest and was running her fingertips across his back. She reached up and kissed him gently as she felt his breathing begin to slow. “Goodnight, Luke.” As he returned her kiss, she heard his voice in her mind. *Pleasant dreams, my love.*

Rolling over to keep the morning sunlight from her eyes, Mara found her arm resting on cold sheets rather than the warmth of her husband. She forced her eyes to open and looked around the room. She smiled as she saw Luke, sitting cross-legged on the floor with his eyes closed. Then as her mind cleared, she became somewhat confused. It was not unusual for him to meditate in the morning before she awoke but he did not normally stay in their bedroom.

Mara got out of bed and after a quick trip to the refresher, moved to kneel on the floor facing him. Leaning back on her heels, she placed her hands on his thighs. She then began to slow her breathing, trying to bring herself into sync with Luke. Although not skilled enough to join in his meditation, the peace and contentment he was radiating through the Force washed over her. It enveloped her and helped her to reach her own meditative state.

There she remained, totally lost within herself until a jolt of emotion from Luke brought her out of her trance. As Mara focused her vision, she caught a glimpse of terror cross his face before the serene expression of the Master once again took hold. "What happened, Luke?" she whispered with more than a hint of fear in her voice.

"I'm not really sure," Luke replied softly. He closed his eyes, trying to regain his center and grasp the fleeting image that had flickered in his mind. "I was searching for you, I think. There was someone helping me but I couldn't see who it was." He grasped her hands tightly as he spoke.

"Could it be related to your vision of the other day?" Mara asked.

"Possibly," Luke replied in his calmest tone. "We will just have to trust the Force that we can deal with any situation that arises."

A small smile formed on Luke's face as he leaned toward her but Mara could see that it did not reach into his eyes. She leaned in to meet him and kissed him lightly. "Good morning." She wasn't planning on ignoring the warnings the Force was sending them but she wouldn't let them rule her life either. She touched his cheek as she pulled back and smiled warmly.

"Good morning, yourself," Luke replied. "Did you sleep well?

"Yes," Mara answered. Seeing the concerned look that still shadowed his face, she decided she should change the topic of conversation to something more pleasant. "When do you think we will hear from Wedge and Iella?"

"Hopefully, sometime this morning," Luke replied as he rose and pulled Mara to her feet. He hugged her tightly and kissed her again before they walked into the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Within a few minutes, they were eating breakfast and reviewing the information about Corellia that Mara had stored on the datapad.

They had spent quite a bit of time at the table, when Mara rose and headed back towards the bedroom. "I'm going to shower and dress while you look over the rest of the information," she called back as she reached the door.

Luke smiled back at her then refocused his attention on the information before him. Once he finished, he went back to their room. Mara had just finished dressing as he entered. He headed for the shower as she was plaiting her hair.

Luke heard the incoming call signal beeping as he came out of the bedroom. Mara had already secured the connection as he moved to stand beside her. Wedge and Iella's faces appeared on the terminal. "Good morning," Wedge said.

Mara gave Luke a hopeful look before she replied. "Hello. Have you decided?"  
Luke looked at her and sent *being a little direct, aren't you?* Before Mara could reply to his mental message, she heard Iella's voice.

"We would love to join you on this trip," Iella replied warmly.

"I am so glad," Mara said. The four of them continued to talk about their decision, the things they would do on Corellia, when they would leave and the like. They made tentative plans to meet at the 'Jade Saber' at 1100 hours the next morning. Iella told Mara she would call her again once she had confirmed with Mirax. As Mara ended the connection, she reached over and hugged Luke. "This trip is going to be good for all of us." Her expression took on a slight glare as she added sarcastically. "Is there something wrong with being direct?"

"You will never be a diplomat, Mara," Luke laughed as he kissed her.

"I have more than enough other talents," Mara whispered before she initiated a passionate kiss of her own. As she pulled away, she laughed. "We probably should start getting ready for tomorrow morning.”

Taking Luke’s hand, she led him back to the kitchen. They sat at the table and looked at the various hotels listed on the datapad. After a few minutes, Mara said. “I think we should stay at the ‘Regent’. I will contact them and see if we can reserve two adjoining suites.” As she rose from the table, she could see him looking at her as if he wanted to say something. “What is it, Skywalker?”

Luke looked rather sheepish as he answered. “The ‘Regent’ is very expensive, Mara.”

Mara kissed him lightly, then chuckled. “Did you forget that your wife is a wealthy woman? We might as well use some of the credits I earned over the years to pay for this little excursion.” She kissed him again and started walking towards the study. “Make a list of the rest of the things we need to do while I call the hotel.”

Luke looked at his wife as she left the room and felt a momentary flash of guilt. He recalled numerous conversations that he had shared with Han. For years, his brother-in-law had felt guilty living off Leia’s wealth. Han thought he should be supporting his family. Now he was in the same situation. He would just have to listen to his own advice. It did not matter who paid for what as long as they were always there for each other.

Luke had put together their list by the time Mara returned to the kitchen. “At first, I thought we were going to have a problem getting reservations. But when I mentioned who the suites were for, suddenly the clerk became much more accommodating.” She laughed as she sat in the chair beside him. “It’s about time this hero’s life you and Antilles led, provides us with some perks.”

Taking the list, they spent the remainder of the day making arrangements and getting things together for the trip. They packed their luggage, made numerous holonet calls, and made three trips to the ’Jade Saber’. They stopped for a quick dinner, and it was rather late when they returned to the apartment. Luke plopped on the sofa, pulling Mara down with him. “I didn’t realize how much work it was to take a vacation,” he sighed. “Though, it’s not like I ever had a chance to take one before.”

“We will just have to remedy that situation, Farmboy,” Mara chuckled. “Let’s make this the first of many.” She leaned back and relaxed into his embrace. They had sat there for quite a while before she said. “I am about ready to call it a night.” She stood, taking his hand and pulling him up with her.

As they entered their bedroom, Luke pulled Mara into his embrace and kissed her passionately. Once her tongue passed his parted lips, he knew that their intentions were identical. They quickly divested each other of their clothing and moved to their bed. As she lay back, she pulled him down with her. Luke brought his lips to Mara's and began a deep, probing kiss that lasted until they were forced to separate in order to breathe. They kissed, caressed and fondled each other until their arousal was so great that only their physical joining would quench the fire. He rolled Mara onto her back, leaned his weight onto his arms and slid into her warm wetness. They both moaned at the intensity of the pleasure caused by the contact. Luke began thrusting and churning within her, alternating between deep and shallow strokes. Mara's face was contorted with passion as she squirmed beneath him. She wrapped her fingers around his forearms and used the leverage to thrust back against him in time with his movements. The world around them narrowed until only the intensity of their passion existed. Their hearts pounded and they gasped for breath as the waves of a shattering climax flowed over them.

As his breathing returned to normal, Luke rolled onto his side and stared lovingly into Mara's eyes. As always, the love he saw reflected in them threatened to overwhelm him. She smiled warmly at him before her eyes began to close. As he watched her drift off to sleep, his mind flashed back to his two brief visions of her in danger. 'I will protect you from harm, even at the cost of my own life,' he pledged silently. He pulled her against him and wrapped her securely in his arms, as he drifted off to sleep as well.

Mara woke to the smell of cinnamon and caf invading her senses. She entered the kitchen to find Luke already dressed, placing a plate of warm cinnamon rolls on the table. "Looks like you have been up for a while," she said as she approached him.

He kissed her lightly as he pulled out a chair for her. "You can take the boy away from the farm but you can't take the farm out of the boy." He poured them each a cup of caf then sat down beside her. "I thought you might want to go to the ship early so you can double check everything," he said.

"You think you know me pretty well, don't you Skywalker," Mara teased. "Just don't get too sure of yourself. You never know when I will surprise you."

Luke laughed as he took a roll from the plate. They talked about the things that still needed to be done as they ate. Mara showered and dressed as Luke cleaned up from breakfast. He gathered up the few things they still needed to bring to the ship and soon they were ready to leave. Luke called to Artoo to follow them and the left the apartment.

Since they still had plenty of time, they decided to walk to the ship. Although they had walked at a leisurely pace, they were so absorbed in their conversation that they were surprised when they arrived in the hangar. As they walked towards the 'Jade Saber', they noticed that the 'Pulsar Skate' was berthed on the opposite side of the hangar. Luke looked at the 'Skate' more closely and saw that the landing ramp was still securely closed. The Horns had not yet arrived at their ship.

Mara entered the entry code into the controller in her hand as they approached the 'Saber'. As they waited for the ramp to lower, she was again awestruck by the magnitude of the gift Luke had given her. It was more than she could possibly have hoped for. She looked over at Luke and took his face in her hands. She gazed intently into the depths of his crystal blue eyes and whispered. “Thank you again for this wonderful ship. I don’t deserve you.” She pulled his face to hers and kissed him lightly.

“You deserve everything I could give you and more, Mara,” he said as she stepped back. He took her hand and they walked up the ramp. As they reached the hangar door, Luke turned to Artoo. “We need to move the X-wing so that Wedge’s will fit in the hangar.” Artoo beeped his agreement and Luke lifted him into the X-wing. Turning back to leave the hangar, Luke saw his wife gazing at him with a puzzled expression. Before she could even pose her question, he spoke. “I called Wedge before you got up and asked him if he wanted to bring his X-wing. Thought there might be a chance that he and I could get to do a little flying during our vacation.” He gave her his best farmboy smile as he waited for her reaction.

"Iella and I will just have to go shopping while you two go flying," Mara teased. "Could be a very expensive proposition for you, Skywalker."

He rolled his eyes at her before they walked to their cabin. They put away the things that belonged there then moved onto the bridge. Luke put away the remaining items as Mara walked over to the command console. "Why don't you go back and get Artoo and he can help me run the preflight diagnostics."

Mara sat down in the pilot seat and began systematically checking the ship. She was deeply engrossed in her task when she heard Artoo beep beside her. As she gave the droid his instructions, she noticed Luke had not come forward with him. When she turned to look for him, she was surprised to see him leaning against the doorway into the bridge, just looking at her. "Would you like to come and help us?" she asked.

Knowing how much Mara enjoyed being in total control of her ship, Luke just smiled and shook his head. "Not unless there is something that you need me to do." She smiled back and returned her attention to the console.

Luke was walking back to their cabin when he felt a familiar presence approaching the ship. He got to the end of the corridor just as someone stepped onto the landing ramp. "Good morning, Wedge," he said.

"Good morning, Luke," Wedge replied.

Luke walked over to Wedge and grabbed one of the bags he was carrying. "Let's put this stuff in your cabin. Did you move your X-wing into this landing bay?" he asked as the entered the guest cabin.

"Gate is waiting on the other side of the ship," Wedge answered. " We just need to open the hangar door and he will move her in."

They dropped the bags and walked quickly back to the hangar. Within a few minutes, they had Wedge's X-wing securely berthed beside Luke's. Wedge was walking to the wench when he heard a screech coming from Gate. He turned to see Gate floating above the X-wing and Luke smiling broadly. "It's okay Gate," he laughed. "Luke won't drop you."

Gate was still warbling wildly when his wheels touched the floor by Luke's feet. Luke placed his hand on the top of Gate's dome. "I am sorry if I frightened you. I am so use to doing that with Artoo that I didn't think to warn you."

Gate beeped his acceptance of Luke's apology as the three of them made their way back to the corridor. "I am going to head home to pick up Iella and the girls," Wedge told Luke. "We'll be back after we get the girls settled with Corran and Mirax. It shouldn't be more than an hour." He turned to Gate and added, "stay with Luke until I get back."

Luke and Gate headed to the bridge after Wedge left. Mara was so involved with her checks that she didn't sense Luke until he was right beside her. As she turned to look at him, she heard warbling and saw Gate rolling over to where Artoo was working. "Antilles was here." It was a statement not a question.

"He went back to get Iella and the girls," Luke said. "He thought they would be back in about an hour." He looked out the viewscreen to where the 'Pulsar Skate' was berthed. He saw Corran walking to the ship and sent out a Force probe to the other Jedi. He smiled as Corran waved at him indicating that he received his message. He continued looking out the viewscreen, lost in his own thoughts, until he heard Mara's voice. He turned to see her at the communication console and could hear that she was speaking to Mirax. Knowing she would relay anything he needed to know, he returned his gaze to the scene outside the viewport.

The feel of Mara's arms encircling his waist brought Luke back to reality. "Are you okay, Skywalker?" she asked softly. "You have been standing here, staring into space, for quite a while."

"I'm fine," Luke replied, trying to project more conviction than he actually felt. He had focused all his thoughts inward on his two frightening visions but had been unable to expand on them. "Did you get all the preflight checks done?" he asked as he worked to clear his mind.

"Artoo is doing the last ones now," Mara replied. Moving in front of him, she looked intently at her husband, trying to decide whether she should push him to share his concerns or just let it go.

Luke turned her to face the viewscreen and pointed towards the 'Skate'. "There are Wedge, Iella and the girls. It shouldn't be too long before they get here."

Mara leaned back against him as she watched her friends through the viewscreen. She could still feel twinges of trepidation coming from Luke but decided she would wait to see if he would say anything.

They had been looking out the viewscreen for quite a while when they saw Wedge and Iella walking from the landing ramp of the 'Pulsar Skate'. Luke took Mara's hand and led her out of their ship so that they could join their friends. The four of them stood in front of the 'Jade Saber' and watched as the 'Skate's' landing ramp closed and the repulsor lifts were engaged. Mara turned to see a tear sliding down Iella's cheek as the 'Skate' began to move towards the landing bay door.

Wedge put his arm around his wife and gently wiped away the tear that trailed down her cheek. "Don't worry, Iella. They will be fine," he reassured her. Their eyes were glued to the departing ship until it's diminishing shape rendered it totally invisible. Wedge pulled his wife into his arms and kissed her deeply. As he released her, his eyes shifted from Luke to Mara and then back to Iella. "What are we waiting for," he chuckled. "I think it's time we start this vacation." Hand in hand, the two couples walked to the landing ramp of the 'Saber'. They were laughing and chuckling, exactly like friends departing on a vacation should be.

To be continued.


End file.
